During the Clay County Commissioners’ weekly meeting on September 2nd:
Ryan West, County Maintenance, presented a quote to fix the uneven sidewalks around the Courthouse. A motion to approve a quote from Lamunyon for sidewalk repair was made, passing unanimously.
Austin Gillard, CEO of CCMC, gave the monthly report for the Medical Center. The Board asked Gillard about what has happened at Advena Living since they closed the Clay Center location. Gillard stated that the Hospital owns the building and received rent from Advena Living each month. Advena Living ran its business and provided the maintenance. The Hospital will be taking a hard look at the contract and the building before deciding on how to handle this matter. The Riley Family Physicians facility has added 12 additional parking spaces, and the framing of the back addition will start this week. Gillard also reported that Linda Bott, Nurse Practitioner, will be joining and working at the Linn Family Physicians full-time, and Crystal Hawthorne, Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, will be joining Clay Center Family Physicians.
Bobby Shomper, Highway Administrator, met with the Board. The Board asked Shomper about the issues going on with the Meadowlark Rd. and Limestone Rd. projects. The Board received a lot of complaints on both roads after the hard rain. Shomper said that he had driven the road several times over the Holiday weekend and doesn’t understand what happened to the treatment that was put on the road last week. Both Companies have been contacted and will be sending a Representative to view the issue that caused the roads to be in the condition that they are currently in. Shomper also reported that the cost of placing the fog line on the Broughton Rd. would be $12,000 to $14,000. The Board granted permission for the fog lines to be painted on Broughton Rd. The Board also asked Shomper to get a quote on the painting of lines on the Clay County Event Center parking lot that is to be laid soon.
Brad Homman, Homman Electronics, gave a presentation on what the future holds for the County and the purchase of new radios. Homman explained that what started all this was a mandate that the FBI handed down to Law Enforcement with having to provide encryption on their channels. Currently, the radios that the departments are using are 10-12 years old. Homman stated that the radios have advanced and can have both the 400 MHz and 800 MHz on one radio. This can be a real advantage for Law Enforcement and EMS to have. Currently, the State does not charge for using the 800 towers located across the State. By using the State system, the County does not have the cost of renting the local repeaters. The new radios also have LTE service available. With the new radios that have the LTE service, they would be able to talk to each other with WIFI or Cellular service. Homman stated that the Law Enforcement and EMS should both have the encryption, but not the Highway Department. The Deputies can switch over to the other channel to communicate with those who do not have the encryption on their radios.
Alec Trembath, EMS Director, reported they continue to stay busy with emergency runs and out-of-town transfers. The Department held the Critical Incident Debriefing meeting last week for employees to discuss the serious call that was responded to within the County. The new EMT class has started, and they will continue with more hands-on learning.
Alan Benninga, Sheriff, presented a document on the Annual Fire Alarm Inspection for the Law Enforcement Center and the Courthouse. The Board asked Benninga to contact several businesses that provide this service and get quotes to bring back to them at a later date.
Nikki Burwell, Immunization Coordinator, requested permission to use the west side of the Courthouse on September 26th, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., to give Flu and Covid vaccinations to the employees of several businesses and the public if wanted. The Board granted permission to use the west side of the Courthouse to provide this service.
Natalie Muruato, Director of Grow Clay County, met with the Board to give the monthly Grow Clay County Executive Directors Report. Muruato reported that she has met with a couple of individuals to help with different types of Grants and with Historic Tax Credits for the Downtown Revitalization.
April Swartz, Varney’s & Associates, met with the Board to present the 2024 Final Clay County Audit. Swartz reviewed the income and expenses of several of the larger funds with the Board. Swartz reported that the audit went well, and all requirements were met with no findings or violations found.
The Board called Rhonda Carroll, Landfill Director, to discuss the State Inspection that was done last week. The Board asked about the items that the Landfill was written up for. Carroll stated that she has 30 days to correct the items and report back to the State.
