Public Notice
NIOBRARA COUNTY COMMISSIONERS’MEETING
NIOBRARA COUNTY, WYOMING
February 5, 2019
The County Commissioners’ meeting was called to order on this date at 9:00 a.m. with Chairman Patrick H. Wade, Commissioners John Midkiff, Elaine Griffith and County Clerk Becky L. Freeman, present.
Road and Bridge - Fred Thomas, Road and Bridge Foreman, met with the Commissioners and updated them on road and bridge business.
He said a few washouts had occurred as a result of snow and ice melting on frozen ground and that Lund Road had a washout that will require road repairs and the installation of a temporary pipe once the weather is warmer.
He mentioned that J. D. Wasserburger, Kenny DeGering and Greg Starck had contacted him and said they were very pleased with the work done on the road rehab project.
He said the new blade is here and has been in use and noted that that some reclamation work still needs to be done on the Brown Pit.
Brian Wakefield, engineer with BenchMark of Torrington, joined the meeting and submitted pay request #2 from Timberline Services, Inc. for $51,061.44 for the 2018 Road Rehabilitation Project. The group also discussed roads that were being considered for the Industrial Road Program. The Commissioners said that there will be a meeting with WYDOT later to discuss this project if he would like to attend.
Kody Nelson, Chief Operating Officer for the Niobrara Community Hospital, met with the Commissioners and updated them on hospital activities.
The first item he discussed was the financial situation at the hospital. He said it is operating in the black right now and should break even at the end of the year if things stay on track.
He said that the roof has leaks, so it will be a priority for repairs right now and the tub project will be pushed back until the roof is repaired.
He also discussed the Title 25 program and said he had visited with Solutions for Life personnel to better understand the program. He said some changes will be implemented to make the protocol easier for all involved.
Chairman Wade mentioned concerns he had regarding the late filing of the hospital district reports, which are required to be filed with the Wyoming Dept. of Audit. Mr. Nelson assured the Commissioners that this won’t happen again as they now fully understand what is required of them.
County Attorney- Anne Wasserburger, County Attorney, met with the Commissioners to discuss county business.
She provided an overview pertaining to open meetings and rules for calling an Executive Session.
Industrial Road Program (IRP)/WYDOT- Sara Janes-Ellis, WYDOT, Mike Larson, WYDOT Transportation Commissioner, Lowell Fleenor, WYDOT District 2 Resident Engineer, Jim Barnes, WYDOT Resident Engineer, Mark Ayen, WYDOT Construction Engineer and Dell Atkinson, Long Term Recovery Manager, met with the Commissioners, Mr. Thomas and Mrs. Wasserburger to discuss road projects for the Industrial Road Program (IRP). The IRP is a 50/50 cost share with WYDOT to do improvements on roads impacted by industrial traffic. Mr. Thomas explained the priority for Cheyenne River Road to be considered for this program as there is significant oil field truck traffic that uses this road. Cheyenne River Road goes into Weston County and it would be a good idea to contact Weston County to see if they would be interested in participating in this project to improve their portion of Cheyenne River Road.
Mr. Fleenor asked which roads were to be considered for this program, how many miles on each road and to what degree we want improvements/repairs and a timeline for this project.
The Commissioners said that they are considering this to be a two to three year project and have four county roads and approximate mileage for these roads. The roads are as follows Cheyenne River Road, six (6) miles, Twenty Mile Road, nine (9) miles, North Lance Creek Road, five (5) miles and Boner Road, 11 miles.
Mr. Fleenor and Ms. Janes-Ellis need to determine the actual amount of IRP money that is available and then they will contact us.
Mr. Fleenor detailed the process for applying for IRP funds and what happens once the project is approved or denied.
Chairman Wade then inquired about the status of millings the County had requested and Mr. Fleenor said there were millings available, but would double check and let them know.
The group then discussed fiber optics and whether or not fiber could be run down a WYDOT right of way. Mr. Fleenor said they have a utility accommodation policy that provides for the state to issue a permit to install a utility in a WYDOT right of way.
Elected Officials and Department Heads- James Santistevan, Emergency Management Coordinator; Cary Gill, Sheriff; Keri Thompson, Treasurer; Teri Stephens, Assessor; Chrisanna Lund, Clerk of District Court; Kellie Chichester, Extension Educator/4-H Youth Development; and Dell Atkinson, Long Term Recovery Manager, met with the Commissioners and discussed county business.
Mr. Santistevan discussed the Emergency Operations Plan and it is ready to be printed. The plan will be placed on the county website as well as one for each municipality and the sheriff’s office.
He is also trying to get a weather spotters class set up.
He has scheduled a meeting for February 11th at 6:00 p.m. at the City Office to set up a program to develop a plan in the event of a statewide power outage.
Sheriff Gill said he had hired someone for the open dispatch position and is interviewing someone for a patrol position.
Dell Atkinson updated them on economic development matters and said that he will be scheduling a joint powers board meeting soon.
Mrs. Stephens said they are busy conducting their day to day operations.
Ms. Lund said she will be attending association meetings in Cheyenne and that she is still encountering computer and printer problems.
Ms. Chichester presented three bid estimates from J. G. Construction for air conditioning/heating at the fairgrounds. The first option was for air conditioning only at the fairgrounds for $67,500.00; the second option was for air conditioning and heat, indoor installation, for $69,400.00 and the third option was for air conditioning and heat, rooftop Trane system installation, for $68,700.00. These quotes do not include any electrical upgrades and we would need to ensure the unit is compatible with the backup generator. She also presented a list of maintenance items that haven’t been addressed in quite some time.
She also asked the Board if they had made a decision regarding the bathroom stalls and repainting.
She noted that Erin Smith has been working with the county attorney’s office regarding a credit card reader. She said they could use the “square” to go with the county-owned IPad and any associated fees the County would incur would be passed on to the customer.
Mrs. Thompson stated it is business as usual in her office.
Ms. Freeman updated them on the status of the digitization project and said it is business as usual in her office as well.
Chairman Wade discussed broadband options for Niobrara County. He also asked if the fairgrounds had encountered any issues with the rental agreement and both Kellie and Chrisanna said they had not.
Memorandum of Understanding between Niobrara and Converse Counties- This was laid back until the next meeting so that it could be reviewed by the Commissioners.
Wyoming Department of Corrections Amendment One- This was laid back until the next meeting so that it could be reviewed by the Commissioners.
No Cost Extension for Long Term Recovery Grant – It was moved by Commissioner Griffith and seconded by Commissioner Midkiff to approve the No Cost Time Extension for the Long Term Recovery Grant. Motion carried. This agreement extends the long term recovery grant by six months with a new end date of June 30, 2019.
Consent Agenda- It was moved by Commissioner Midkiff and seconded by Commissioner Griffith to approve the consent agenda. Motion carried. Items on the consent agenda were the minutes of the January 22, 2019 meeting and receipts for the month of January from the County Clerk for $5,455.00; from the Sheriff for $2,435.00, and from the Public Health Nurse for $15.00.
Payroll and the following vouchers were approved for payment:
Remit Name Amount Description
