Riley County Commission

May 23, 2011
Joan Strickler, observer


All Commissioners present, McCulloh presiding.

During public comment Paul Foltz asked about an article in Sunday’s Manhattan Mercury concerning the boundaries of Riley and Pottawatomie Counties. He expressed the opinion that Riley should maintain that the shift in the Blue River channel caused by a flood occurring 100 years ago should result in Riley adding to its boundaries the area to the east between the former channel and the current river channel. County Counselor Clancy Holeman explained precedents established in case law have determined that boundaries do not change when the river channel shifts due to flooding. Holeman has asked the Mercury to clarify that as his opinion since it was reported incorrectly in the paper.

CASA Director Jayme Morris-Hardeman and County Attorney Barry Wilkerson spoke of the importance of CASA volunteers. Wilkerson said CASA is a great asset to courts and his office and the agency’s support has resulted in a better life for children. Morris-Hardeman said currently there are about 75 active volunteers but, to meet the need, that number should be doubled. In particular there is a need for more male volunteers.

Greg McClure, Riley County Extension, announced a tour of a wheat variety plot will be held at 6:30 p.m. on a plot located 8 miles north of Randolph and owned by Wendell Anderson. A free supper will be served. Contact the Extension office at 785-537-6350 or gmcclure@ksu.edu. He reported the wheat crop currently looks good for Riley County.

County Engineer Leon Hobson asked for Commissioners to give him input regarding a public information meeting to be held that evening at the fire station off Kimball and Denison. The meeting is being held to discuss provisions of Charter Resolution #8 pertaining to maintenance responsibilities of township roads. Problems occur when township roads are paved but deteriorate to the point of needing to be reconstructed at considerable cost. The proposed resolution would include a right for the County to establish a maintenance fee through special assessment to deal with reconstruction costs of paved township roads. If over 50% of the residents file a protest, the County will have no responsibility to continue to maintain the road. Only paved roads are affected.

Assistant County Engineer Gary Rosewicz reported costs, particularly fuel costs, are running high in operating the Solid Waste Facility. Commissioners approved a $3 increase in the cost charged per haul.

It was mentioned that Ogden was being cited for water quality problems due to low chlorine levels. Reportedly a child became sick from a microbial contaminant after swimming in the pool.

Hobson said the overlay on McDowell Creek Road should be completed by June 3. Improvements to Wildcat Creek Road will be dealt with in 5 or 6 phases.

Riley County Commission mtg 5-16-11

All Commissioners present. Susanne Kufahl, Health Department, was scheduled to request a letter of support for a grant. She was ill and did not come Commissioners agreed that Clancy Holeman, County Counselor, would draft a letter of support anyway.

Leon Hobson presided over opening of four (4) bids for remodel project at Public Works Site. lower level. Commissioners voted 3-0 to refer bids to staff for review and recommendation.

Cheryl Collins, Director of RC Historical Museum, announced that she will present a lunch-time lecture at noon on May 17 at the Museum, on Josiah Pillsbury "the Man, the Bridge, and the Crossing." This is one of six Kansas 150 lunch time lectures. Others will be July 12, September 13, and November 15.

Bridget Howland discussed "Cycle CASA," a bicycle-riding fundraiser for CASA. It will start in Anneberg Park on Saturday May 21.

Leon Hobson, Public Works Director, said a public meeting will be held at the fire station on May 23 at 7:00 for landowners in special paving benefit districts. Questions? 539-2981.

Simm Road will be briefly closed for maintenance. McCowell Creek Road will be narrowed to one lane. Traffic will be permitted, but expect delays. Project finish date estimated June 3.

Public works asst director said Wildcat Creek Road will be closed south of Eureka Drive starting May 23, for a 9-month project.

Rich Vargo presented highlights of the Kansas Association of Counties research report on demographics and population, and fiscal information. Riley County has 71,300 population, making it the 7th largest County in KS. At $499 million, RC is 9th in assessed valuation. RC is 96th (of 105) in mill levy, and taxes of $226.00 per capita, make it 104th.

Clancy Holeman, County Counselor, conducted an administrative work session. He will attend a meeting of County Counselors in Saline, where he has been invited to participate in a panel. He intends to share ideas Riley County has put into action which help to make the County function more efficiently: e.g. regular Department Head meetings, and County Officials luncheons. In other business, Holeman discussed his latest findings regarding river channel changes affecting boundary between Pottawatomie and Riley Counties.

Eileen King, Treasurer, gave monthly financial report. Investment income is at 35.2% of budget (at 33% of year elapsed). Overall sales tax collections are at 42.8% of budget, though Jan and Feb sales were down. Auto sles are up from last year, utilities down.

Ralph, DeZago, who happens to be City prosecutor in Junction City and is a former public defender, requested permission to continue selling hot dogs on County Property (Courthouse Plaza). He wishes to bring his cart only from 9:00 to 3:00 or so on Saturdays. He is willing to apply each week and pay for a permit, and submit to any other regulations the Commission wishes to exert. He has a State Board of Health license and several others, including City. He has been opposed by some businesses, especially in Aggieville, which is not downtown, and has been refused permission to set up on Poyntz Avenue. The City Commission is in discussion about his requests, which would seem to have legal standing through a loophole in a Kansas statute dating from the times when TB was a major factor. The City seems to be concerned about other vendors becoming a clutter in the streets. City discussed matter at work session, voted (not binding, since work session) 3-2 to pass an ordinance repealing the ordinance allowing vendors. The matter is apparently to be dealt with on the consent agenda, next Tuesday, which precludes public discussion at a legislative session. [Comment to LWV members: Is this an irregularity in procedure?] County Commissioners discussed Mr. DeZago's request, and could not find a reason to deny it. They agreed to give provisional permission on a weekly basis until July 1.

Cindy Volanti, Human Resource Manager, requested a change in the Personnel Policy - D-2 (d) Pay Increases. The change would allow seasonal workers who accumulate over 2000 hours over more than one season to receive a one-step pay raise. Approved 3-0.

Commission went into Executive Session to discuss performance of non-elected personnel.

Johnette Shepek, Budget and Finance Officer, will give her report on RC bonded and indebtedness at a future meeting. Submitted by Lyndal Nyberg

USD 383 Board of Education

May 4, 2011

Kathy Dzewaltowski, observer

Board members discussed the possibility of not filling an assistant principal position at MHS for the second year in a row. Board members were concerned about the remaining assistant principals becoming worn out by extra duties created by being one position short. MHS Principal Terry McCarty said the other assistant principals have been able to handle the extra work and will be able to do so for another year, but MHS would like to have the position filled when the high school remodeling project is completed.

Board President Susan Marshall commented on the letter the Board of Education had sent to the City Commission regarding the proposed amendment to the nondiscrimination ordinance. The previous evening, the City Commission had discussed repealing the ordinance, and it had been mentioned that the school district had been opposed to the ordinance because the district wouldn't know how to enforce it. Marshall read the board's letter aloud and said maybe the commissioners had misheard or misunderstood the content of the letter because it didn't say the district wouldn't know how to enforce the ordinance.

The board discussed at length whether to begin offering football as an extracurricular activity for 7th graders. The middle school administrators and athletic directors presented a proposal that would include 7th graders without increasing costs. Seventh and 8th graders would try out for available spots on the team, they would have equal opportunity to earn spots, and the resulting team would be comprised of a combination of 7th and 8th graders. Dave Colburn expressed concerns about exposing 7th graders to possible brain injuries and didn't want to add another year to when kids can be exposed to such injuries. Several board members emphasized that middle school sports is still on the list of potential cuts to reduce the budget and wanted supporters of 7th grade football to realize that it could still get cut later. The proposal to allow 7th grade football was approved 5-1 with Colburn dissenting.

Board of Riley County Commissioners

Riley County Commission
May 9, 2011

All present

Johnette Shepek reported on comparisons of Law Enforcement costs to 5 other counties in northeast KS including each one's largest city, and said that Riley county's per capita expenditures were next to the lowest. Comparisons can be difficult, however, because of various factors including having more than one sizeable city within the county..
A request had been made concerning the city/county RCPD funding split. When comparing the present and proposed city/county cost division it was determined that with current tax values and comparing a 75/25 cost split vs the current 80/20 split, the result would be a difference of 49 cents per year to a Manhattan home with value of $150,000.
Rich Vargo told the commission that 1/3 of the way through the year the wages and overtime expenditures average 29.33% of the budgeted amounts. In overall expenditures Juvenile detention was 49.87 % and RCPD was 48.8% while some other depts were below the average..
Cheryl Collins announced that Matt McDonough, Riley County Historical Museum Assistant was the recipient of the KSU Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. McDonough told the commission a bit about his philosophy of teaching history (get the students to care) and his research - American 19th Century Expansionism.
The Commission was updated on the progress with the Maplewood mobile home park owned by Lawrence Prawl. They are behind in paying taxes, have filed bankruptcy and notice of abandonment has been filed. The County is asking that the delinquent taxes be paid in full. The property has been sold and the new owners are positive about the future of the park.

Health Board Reports

Health Department Report for April 27, 2011

Susan Kufahl, Assistant Administrator presented a color coded

financial report that attempted to illustrate more clearly for the Board how the

funding from various entities, i.e. State, Federal, City and County and the many

grants which the Department depends on to fund many of the programs offered

by the Health Department. In the past various Board members have indicated

difficulty understanding why a standard monthly financial statement is not really

feasible because of the many differing dates when funding comes in and the many

differing requirements of grant funding such as matching funds. Brady Burton, president

of the Board thanked Ms. Kufahl and the finance department for this effort and

stated it was very useful.

Debby Nuss, chair of the committee working on the tool for the search for a

replacement for Charles Murphy, Health Department Administrator, who will retire

in December, 2011, presented a “draft” of a plan and initiated a discussion of how the

Board wants to proceed. The decision was to gather responses from the members of

the Board and to present a second draft at the next Board meeting and to decide then

on how the Board wishes to proceed.

Adopting the Proposed Budget for 2012 was put off until the next meeting allowing

time for the board members to study it. It was decided to send it on to the City and County

as the deadline for submitting it had passed noting that it had not yet been passed by the Board.

The ongoing discussion of allowing the Health Department to accept Medicaid

patients at their clinic. but not including children since all the Pediatricians in Manhattan

have indicated that they accept all Medicaid patients, was tabled until August when the

Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in Junction City may be granted expansion

which would provide for more medicaid access. Charles Murphy noted that Riley County’s

ration of primary care providers is 889:1. The national benchmark is 631:1 and that the number

of uninsured adults in Manhattan is around 25% versus a Kansas average of 16%.

The Board approved contracting with Varney Associates for the annual audit as

well as approving The Healthy Families America contract.

The Board had requested that Pat Collins, Riley County Emergency Planner,

who was unable to be present, still be requested to come and provide information to the Board.

Karen McCulloh also requested that presentations from the department”s staff be continued

to help the Board to understand the workings of the Department.

Finally, a discussion of the Riley County Health Rankings indicated that the main

problem is binge drinking but that the County fared quite well on other health assessments.

Submitted by Sue Cohen

County commission April 25, 2011

County Commission April 25, 2011

All Commissioners present.

The Commission approved the amended Manhattan Urban Area Comprehensive Plan that was presented to them at the last Commission meeting, April 21.

Rod Meredith, Assistant Public Works Director presented the single bid for asphalt overlay. It was submitted by Schilling Asphalt. The bid was referred to staff for recommendations.

Johnetta Shepek reported from the Budget and Planning Committee on the CIP, County Building Fund, Economic Development fund and the Road and Bridge Sales 1/2 Cent Sales Tax fund.

During the Press Conference, Eileen King reminded people that, for car owners with names beginning with C or D, their license plates must be renewed before Monday, May 2.

Commission Chair, Karen McCulloh, read a statement proclaiming May as Mental Health month. Mental Health issues of some sort strike one in four persons in any given year and one in seventeen will deal with serious issues.

Leon Hobson gave a progress update on Public works projects.

The Commission went into executive session relating to the acquisition of real property.

Julie Merklin, observer

County Commission April 21, 2011

BOCC April 21, 2011

All Commissioners were present.

Debbie Regester, Register of deeds said the 2011 revenue is up about $36000 compared to last year. Recently there was a mortgage of $12 million, another for $1.6 million. There are some apartments planned for Moro and 11th st and others for Denison and Claflin which will bring in more revenue.
Regester said that software is working well and the vender has been extremely helpful

Clancy Holeman, counselor/director of Administrative Services said the administrator for the panel of attorneys that work with indigent persons will participate in the budget process for the new 3 year contract. Having the administrator participate in the budget process will help the panel understand the process and the difficulties of budgeting. . Two of the current attorneys have said they will not continue on the panel

Jennifer Wilson, County Extension Director, reported that the VITA program (volunteers who help with taxes for low income people) has finished up. They received an IRS grant of $10,000 which helped with purchase of supplies and to pay for a site coordinator. Four hundred low-to-moderate income people were helped – this was 100 more than last year and 50 over the goal. Some people were also filing for tax year 2009. There were 15 volunteers. The program has now been in place for 6 years.

Brad Schoen, RCPD Director, talked about the Safety Committee meeting which discussed “Fake Patty’s Day”. There has been talk of possible new codes and the possibility of recovering some costs which totaled about $60,000, not considering the loss to businesses which closed or had reduced business activity. It is the bars that are making the money.

Because the RCPD is funded by both the city and the county and there are new city commissioners, and thus new Law Board members, there will be a meeting for new Law Board members to be oriented to the county’s budget process and how it affects RCPD funding

Monty Wedel, Planning Director explained the Gateway To Manhattan plan as an attachment to the Manhattan Urban Area plan. A formal hearing will be held next Monday.

Pat Collins, Emergency Management Director presented the RC Fire District#1 2011 first quarter Run Report . Fire calls for grass fires were 42, up from 26 in 2010 first quarter, EMS rescue calls were 49 as compared to 33 in 2010. Total calls were 137 compared to 91.

Julie Merklin, observer

Riley County Commission

April 18, 2011


All Commissioners present, McCulloh presiding.

It was agreed to ask the designated administrator for the attorneys paid by the County to represent clients in indigent and child-in-need cases to report to the Commission on a quarterly basis. County Counselor Holeman said, in his opinion, they are doing a good job.

During a general discussion of issues, Commissioner Lewis mentioned observing those participating in the Gay Rights parade and those attending the Tea Party function. He said he saw more people involved in the Gay Rights activity than that of the Tea Party.

County Attorney Craig Cox discussed an investigation he made concerning complaints about some property in Valleywood. A house is in poor shape with weeds and construction material in the yard. Cox will be in contact with the property owner.

County Counselor Clancy Holeman said he talked to Gina Scroggs, head of Downtown Manhattan, in regard to the controversy over allowing a hot dog vendor to do business in the downtown area. Holeman said it seems the business community is split on the issue. The restaurants are opposed to allowing the vendor while others see it as a way to attract more people to the area.

The Commissioners proclaimed April 18 as Bruce Sneed Day and presented a certificate to Mr. Sneed in appreciation of his contributions to Manhattan and Riley County.

Museum Curator Cheryl Collins announced tours of Goodnow House will be offered 4th grade students April 25, 26 and 27. Normally the tours are given in Wolf House but, due to renovations occurring there, the children will visit Goodnow.

City Planner Monty Wedel presented an award trophy for the Vision 2025 plan to the Commission. The National Association of City Planners gave the award to Riley County in recognition of excellence.

The Manhattan Area Transit Services Interlocal Cooperation Agreement has been finalized and federal funds have been awarded to implement the transportation system. All that remains is for the City Commission to agree to meet its $54,000 funding responsibility.

USD 383 Board of Education

April 6, 2011
Kathy Dzewaltowski, observer

Work session:
The work session focused on the construction project at Bluemont Elementary. During construction, a temporary parking lot will be put in place on the south side of the building, and the option of making the temporary lot permanent had been explored. The city had indicated it would not allow a permanent parking lot on the south side because traffic on Bluemont Ave. would be negatively impacted by cars turning into the parking lot.

Following the Bluemont discussion, the board also reviewed a few of the factors that will affect the budget, such as state funding being reduced to $3,780 per pupil, projected enrollment increasing by 210 students, transportation costs increasing, federal stimulus dollars ending, salary increases, and revenue from new facility weighting resulting from the completed construction projects.

Regular meeting:
The board reviewed a report on gifted education. Students have to score at the 95th percentile in at least one subject area or at the 97th percentile on an IQ test in order to qualify for services. Usha Reddi, elementary teacher, addressed the board about her concerns about a potential economic gap. Bluemont and Ogden, both schools with families with lower incomes, had the fewest number of students qualifying for gifted services.

Board members discussed the option of a new gym floor for Lee Elementary. Lee's construction project had experienced unforeseen expenses (new fire lane and new water main) that had caused the gym floor to not be bid as part of the construction project to reduce costs. Now that the project is 50% complete, the project manager was confident that there were enough contingency funds available to complete the gym floor. All of the other elementary schools are scheduled to receive new gym floors, so board members had not wanted Lee to be the only school to not get one. Susan Marshall wondered if the gym floor was a priority for the school or if there were other items that had been deleted from the project that might be a higher priority. The board approved the gym floor 6-1 with Marshall dissenting.

The board was presented information regarding the creation of a Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) at MHS. An application to create a program usually takes 2-3 years to be approved, so a program would not begin until the 2013-14 or 2014-15 school years. The district's cost for the program in the initial year would be $100,000 and then would be $88,500 for subsequent years. Pete Paukstelis asked whether MHS faculty were supportive of starting a JROTC program, and Terry McCarty, MHS principal, reported that the faculty were supportive but concerned about the logistics of budget and space for the program. The district will have the ability to back out of the application process before 2014. The board approved 7-0 to pursue the JROTC application process.

Riley County Commission mtg 4-14-11

All Commissioners present. After routine business, Leon Hobson, Pub Works Director, conducted opening of bids for Wildcat Creek Road reconstruction and water main improvements. There were six bids. Bids came in under the Engineers' Estimate by over $1 million. Commissioners referred the bids to staff for review and recommendation, 3-0.
Lyle Butler, Chamber of Commerce, updated Commission on Economic Development projects. He said now that the K-18 alignment is set, some companies may wish to situate on the corridor. Good planning by City and County will be needed to promote desirable development. There are two empty buildings in the Tech Park which were built specifically to house call centers. Conversion of such buildings is not easy, but it is possible. Some companies have inquired about coming here, but have lost interest when they discovered the $12 per-hour rate of pay required in order to receive favorable tax incentives. Such companies customarily offer $8.50-$10.50. Butler mentioned some interest expressed by (unidentified) companies from around the world and the US. Most of them are interested in cooperative agreements with researchers at KSU in such fields as fertilizer, cyber security, DNA vaccines, and other vaccines. These are not only connected to NBAF. Commissioners discussed the attractiveness of Manhattan's quality of life. Ms McCullogh asked if the Chamber could help stir interest in the seminars offered by Public Works on Energy Efficiency. Butler said he would confer with Rod Meredith.
Eileen King, County Treasurer, reported on monthly finances. Investment income is holding up. In her conversations with other County Treasurers, King is envied for the "high" interest rate of l.00% which she is receiving. Invetment earnings ar presently at 32.16% of annual budget. Sales tax receipts are down, primarily because of bad weather every week-end in January (the month reported on in March). This meant that people were not buying cars. In answer to a question from Mr. Lewis, King said that as to income from Fake Patty's Day, there are no bars in the top hundred sales tax contributors in the State. In ad valorum tax, 55.53% of budget has been collected. County has collected 25.27% of budgeted motor vehicle taxes. It was noted in passing that military personnel are exempt from personal property tax on cars, but they do pay sales tax.
Clancy Holeman requested an executive session. Granted.
Commissioners gave permission to allow residents of paving benefit districts 30 additional days to file petitions in opposition to a charter change resolution, since they had not been personally notified.
Rod Meredith conducted bid opening for asphalt seal oil. There were three bids. Commissioners referred the bids to staff for review and recommendations.
Meredith conducted bid opening for crushed limestone chips. Two bids, referred for review and recommendation by staff.
Johnette Shepek, Budget and Finance Officer, conducted a discussion of 2012 Budget Baseline. In previous years, departments have based their budget requests on the previous year's amounts.The proposal was to have departments base their budget requests on actual perceived need. Some budget items are not in Commission control: e.g. RCPD, Health Dept. Others are subject to discussion and revision by the Commission. Budgeting has two sections: 1) the "three C's": Contractual services, Capital outlay, and Commodities; 2) Personnel. By consensus, Commission agreed to allow 2012 Budget requests by departments to be based on actual projected needs. They ask for full funding of the three C's, and project personnel costs with stop increases only. COLA raises would be computed at a later time in the budgeting process. Ms Shepek will notify the agencies that receive County support of this policy.
Adjourned. Submitted by Lyndal Nyberg.