Monroe County Board of County Commissioners met May 21.
Here is the minutes provided by the Board:
The meeting of the County Commissioners of Monroe County, Illinois was called to order at 8:00 a.m. Chairman Robert Elmore, Commissioner Delbert Wittenauer and Commissioner Vicki Koerber were present.
The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Others present included County Clerk Dennis Knobloch, and Annmarie Marcuson, along with Press Corps representatives – Joe Leicht of the Monroe County Independent and Alan Dooley of the Republic Times. Also present were Ron Schultheis and Jason Jones.
There being a quorum present, the meeting was called to order by Chairman Elmore.
There were no public comments.
Aaron Metzger came to the meeting to discuss Highway Department business. He said he is submitting an application through East-West Gateway for Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Funds to construct a right-turn lane at Hanover Road. Mr. Metzger said if approved the funding for this project will be 80% Federal and 20% other (either local or State).
Resolution 18-43
Whereas, in the interest of improved transportation facilities and safety to the motoring public, Monroe County proposes to construct a right turn lane on Hanover Road (C.H. 8) onto southbound Illinois Route 3; and
Whereas, East-West Gateway is soliciting projects for the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) Funds and the aforementioned Hanover Road Right Turn Lane is a qualifying project.
Now, Therefore Be It Resolved, that the County of Monroe shall apply for CMAQ Funds to help finance said Hanover Road Right Turn Lane; and
Be It Further Resolved that the County Board Chairman be authorized to sign the Financial Certification, the Notification of Title VI Non-Discrimination Requirements and all other documents required for submittal in the application of said CMAQ Funds.
Passed by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Illinois at Waterloo, this 21st day of May, 2018.
Motion: Wittenauer Second: Koerber
Aye: Three Nay: None
Absent: None
Mr. Metzger said the County/City of Waterloo application for the Bike Trail/sidewalk around Country Club Lane once again lost out to other applications. He said there were 218 projects submitted for approval, and the City of Columbia was successful in receiving a streetscape grant. Mr. Metzger said that the tree removal and cleanup work at Miles Cemetery has also been completed successfully, and the Cemetery is now once again open to the public.
The following Accounts Payable having been approved for payment, Commissioner Wittenauer moved that the same be allowed and that vouchers be issued against their respective funds of the County Treasurer for payment. Motion seconded by Commissioner Koerber, and so declared. All voting Aye, none Nay, and none Absent. Motion carried.
General Fund:
10-8 Video 268.90
ADP, LLC 1,355.00
All Type Tree Service Inc. 3,000.00
Americom 1,207.00
Axis Forensic Technology Inc. 550.00
Blackbaud 1,799.00
Bountiful Blossoms 44.95
Carl J. Mendenhall 210.89
Coast to Coast 1,576.92
Columbia Quarry Company 1,955.40
Dobbs Tire & Auto Centers 566.79
East West Gateway 4,119.63
Elizabeth M. Smith 71.19
Gateway FS 71.19
GreatAmerica Financial Services 152.49
Harrisonville Telephone Company 420.12
IL Assn. County Clerks & Recorders 20.00
Illinois South Tourism 4,000.00
K&D Printing 23.00
Kamal Sabharwal Inc. 1,750.00
Kyle Waddington 134.58
Lisa Fallon 125.35
M P S Industries 1,374.75
McCarthy, Leonard & Kaemmerer, L.C. 4,777.50
Midwest Occupational Medicine Ltd 45.00
Monroe County Electric Coop Inc. 437.50
Monroe County EMS Assn 75.00
Monroe County Highway Fund 265.18
Motorola 1,427.00
Neal Rohlfing 439.21
Notary Public Assoc. of Illinois 54.00
Oak Hill 10,440.00
Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. 240.00
Quality Collision 260.13
Quill Corporation 49.90
Ray O’Herron Co Inc. 344.09
Reliable Sanitation Service Inc. 2,731.75
Scott Schumer 162.85
Tessco 237.72
Total Eclipse 900.00
Traughber & Morris Ltd 741.67
UPS 11.03
V “Red” Smith 20.00
Watson’s Office City 230.25
Wex 5,440.46
Ambulance Service Fund:
Airgas Mid America 484.83
Andres Medical Billing, Ltd 3,392.00
Motorola Solutions 396.00
New Creations Screen Printing 35.00
Shirleen Schaefer 30.00
Wells Fargo Vendor Fin Service 115.99
Wex 1,946.27
Health Tax Fund:
Clarke Mosquito Control Products 56.76
Culligan-Schaefer Water Centers 55.75
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals 810.88
Harrisonville Telephone Company 325.91
Motorola 34.00
Highway Fund:
Ameren Illinois 41.51
Brian Edler 346.00
Coast to Coast Equipment & Supplies Inc. 8,264.00
Cole Gassett 50.00
Columbia Quarry Company 268.10
CPR Plus 376.00
DataTronics Inc. 188.00
Monroe County Electric Cooperative 976.76
Monroe County EMS Association 175.00
Nu-Deal Oil Company 399.92
Quill 71.18
Reliable Sanitation Service Inc. 50.60
Thouvenot Wade & Moerchen Inc. 4,877.25
County Motor Fuel:
Columbia Quarry Company 3,570.72
JTC Petroleum Co. 23,607.44
Road Motor Fuel:
Columbia Quarry Company 303.64
Recorder’s Document Fund:
Fidlar Technologies 2,007.00
Motion was made by Commissioner Wittenauer, with a second by Commissioner Koerber to approve the regular minutes from May 7, 2018. All voting Aye, none Nay and none Absent. Motion carried.
Motion was made by Commissioner Wittenauer, with a second by Commissioner Koerber to allow LifechurchX to use the Courtyard and Bandstand on Sunday, September 30 for a church service and biker event with motorcycle show. All voting Aye, none Nay and none Absent. Motion carried.
Motion was made by Commissioner Wittenauer, with a second by Commissioner Koerber to allow Championship Martial Arts to use the Courtyard and Bandstand on June 25 for Karate Classes in the Park. All voting Aye, none Nay and none Absent. Motion carried.
Motion was made by Commissioner Koerber, with a second by Commissioner Wittenauer to appoint Edie Koch to the St. Louis Regional Freightway Council to replace Emily Fultz who has resigned. All voting Aye, none Nay and none Absent. Motion carried.
Resolution 18-44
Be It Resolved by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Illinois that Edie Koch, Executive Director, Monroe County Illinois Economic Development, 100 South Main Street, Waterloo, Illinois, be appointed to the St. Louis Regional Freightway Council, replacing Emily Fultz who has resigned, with term to commence on May 21, 2018 and expire on or when a successor is appointed and has qualified.
Passed by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Illinois at Waterloo this 21st day of May, 2018.
Motion: Koerber Second: Wittenauer
Aye: Three Nay: None
Absent: None
Commissioner Koerber said she thinks the County Board needs to sit down with the County Engineer and the Building Inspector to discuss the potential plans for the Annex Building. She said she also thought that representatives of the Extension Service, the Ambulance Service, the Regional Superintendent and the Health Department should be involved in the discussion so any necessary changes in office layout can be included in the planned renovation work. Chairman Elmore said he thinks the roof needs to be completed before any work is done on the inside of the building. Commissioner Wittenauer said a replacement metal roof should also be considered for that building. The cost may be higher, but a metal roof will last for many years to come. Chairman Elmore said he would like to see a plan for the roof by the end of June. Commissioner Wittenauer said a plan for the entire building needs to be completed as soon as possible, including ideas from all of the participating offices, so when the Health Department moves out, work can proceed on renovations.
There was discussion of the meeting room at the new Health Department location. Commissioner Wittenauer said the meeting room at the Health Department will not be as large as the Annex meeting room. Commissioner Koerber said she also wanted to clarify that the Coroner will not include a morgue at that location unless outside grant funding can be obtained. It was decided to get all the interested parties to the regular meeting on June 4.
Ms. Marcuson said the Board needs to look at purchasing new chairs for the public area of the County Board meeting room. It was suggested that she look at GRS Auction for used equipment. Commissioner Koerber said she would like to see the old Courtroom set up as a County Board meeting room with a built-in Commissioner Meeting Counter, plus sound equipment that can make it possible for the public to hear what’s going on at meetings. Commissioner Wittenauer said he didn’t think that was necessary, and it would be a very costly project, unless it is necessary to include an adequate sound system for the meetings. Commissioner Koerber said it is very difficult to hear in the current Board room. Commissioner Wittenauer said even if the County Board moves into that room, there will not be more people at County Board meetings, and if there are other things to spend money on, that is not his priority. Commissioner Koerber asked if there were ever evening meetings. Commissioner Wittenauer said that was tried after Mike Kovarik took office, and no extra constituents came to the evening meetings. He said when you have night meetings, it is also a problem if you need information from one of the offices, because those people are not here to get that information.
Chairman Elmore said there was a successful Grand Opening at Sun Basket in Rock City last week with Governor Rauner in attendance. He said they currently have 400 employees and are looking to add more.
Courtney Schweickhardt came to the meeting to discuss the Probation office. She discussed the Redeploy program. She said this is a grant that is used to provide the programs that are not otherwise available in the community. Ms. Schweickhardt said they are currently doing a program that deals with mental health and substance abuse, and these programs can be changed to meet the changing needs of the community. She said currently people who use the program have to be Monroe County residents, and they have to exhibit one or both of those two needs. Ms. Schweickhardt said one of the problems is coming up with enough people who match the program needs to sustain the size of the group that undergoes assistance. She said it takes 15-20 people in the group to sustain the programs.
Ms. Schweickhardt said another one of the problems is transportation – a way for the clients to get to where the program is being offered, many times in St. Clair County. Commissioner Wittenauer said work is underway to make the Monroe County Transit services available to more individuals and to travel to more areas including St. Clair County. She said she has had 20 cases during the past month, and they included the following:
6 were non-drug or alcohol related
2 were for DUI
10 were for controlled substances
1 was for marijuana
1 was for meth
Commissioner Wittenauer said it’s evident that this problem is growing, and more assistance is needed in the Probation office. He said Jennifer with the Monroe-Randolph Transit District should be contacted to see if they could provide assistance. Ms. Schweickhardt said she is also responsible for people out of state if they commit a crime in Monroe County. She said the additional Probation Officer for Monroe County will not be approved until she finds out if the grant was approved. The Commissioners asked her to keep them updated on at least a quarterly basis.
Rachel Giffhorn came to the meeting to present the Oak Hill report. She said the census remains strong, and the financial status is above budget as well, and expense control is in check. Ms. Giffhorn said they have started using the new pharmacy and have already seen a decrease in pharmacy expenses. She said Oak Hill is once again a 5-star facility. Ms. Giffhorn said there has also been a change of Medicare reimbursement which includes an increase in that rate. Motion was made by Commissioner Wittenauer, with a second by Commissioner Koerber to approve the monthly Nursing Home bills. All voting Aye, none Nay and none Absent. Motion carried.
A delegation from Harrisonville Telephone Company came to the meeting to discuss phone service. Craig Brown said right now the County has POTS service – Plain Old Telephone. He said right now the County has a 10-line system, with the main number followed by nine rollover numbers. The current cost for that arrangement is $1,043.99, and the revised cost for the improved SIP Trunk would be $1,022.22 or $21.77 less. The County could also choose to go to a 15-line system for $1,097.22 or a 20-line system for $1,222.22. Mr. Brown said this would also allow HTC to make revisions to the system over the internet rather than having to physically enter any of the facilities. Commissioner Wittenauer asked if we know how much traffic is on the phone lines right now. Mr. Brown said he could do a traffic study to determine that number. There was also discussion of establishing separate phone numbers for each County office. Mr. Brown said if it is decided to do this, it would be best to wait until the new phone directory comes out in early 2019. Mr. Brown said he would initiate one week of traffic study to determine the number of calls coming into the building. The County Board decided to go with the same type plan with the cost of $1,022.22.
Daniel Rahe, Chairman of the Monroe-St. Clair-Madison Counties Extension Service Unit #22, came to the meeting to discuss group finances. Also present were Pam Jacobs, Brian Mueller, George Obernagel, Richard Woodcock and Don Schrader. Mr. Rahe distributed various materials to the Commissioners. He explained that of these three Counties, Monroe County was the only one of those three Counties that passed a referendum (in 1993) authorizing the County to levy a tax of.05% to support the University of Illinois Extension Service. Most of the Counties in the State did pass that referendum. Mr. Rahe said that through the years, any extra monies paid into the Extension Service by Monroe County were accumulated in a Trust Fund for that County. He said according to the FY 2017 report, Monroe County should have had $1,231,589.59 in that Trust Fund account, but the balance in the account was only $786,465.51. Mr. Rahe said the difference in these amounts has been used to help pay the deficit created because St. Clair and Madison Counties are not carrying their fair share of the financial load in this 3-County unit. He said he disagrees with Pam Jacobs who says that the extra money is to be used to support the entire 3-County unit. Mr.Rahe said he does not like that Monroe County continues to spend extra money to help keep the Extension Service operational in St. Clair and Madison County.
Mr. Rahe said as of 3/31/2018, Monroe County should have $1,335,838.13 in that Trust Fund, and the balance is only $849,990.99 He said one of the problems he is concerned about is that since he is Chairman of the three-County group, he is responsible for signing the annual budget, and he has a problem signing a budget that looks like this. Mr. Rahe said Kevin Koenigstein was Chairman of the group last year, so he is also very familiar with these issues. Mr. Rahe said St. Clair County has now said they will be pulling out completely of providing funding to this partnership. He said population-wise, Monroe County is the smallest, but is providing the most funding to the program. Ms. Jacobs said the Master Gardener and Master Naturalist programs are stronger in Madison and St. Clair Counties, while the 4-H program is stronger in Monroe County.
Commissioner Koerber asked about the proceeds of Harvest Night. Ms. Jacobs said that money is paid to the Monroe County Extension and 4-H Education Foundation, and that group makes a contribution to the Extension Service budget, and they also support the Baebler Farm. Ms. Jacobs said the $163,000 provided by the Monroe County Board as part of the tax extension also goes exclusively to Monroe County program support. She said the cost of supporting the salaries, programs and rent in Monroe County are well over $225,000 annually.
Commissioner Wittenauer asked about the rents paid for Madison and St. Clair County offices. Ms. Jacobs said there is only one other office in Collinsville, with annual rental of $58,000, and 80% of that cost is covered by SNAP dollars (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Ms. Jacobs said the Extension Service receives about $1 million in Federal SNAP dollars, and part of those funds also help to support the Service itself. She said these dollars cover 80% of the rent for the Collinsville office, and the salaries of seventeen staff member that work the program. Mr. Rahe said if SNAP is a Federal program, it should not be the responsibility of the county to help support that program and keep it going.
Mr. Rahe said none of this extra money would be there if this County Board and the previous County Commissioners had not continued to fund the Extension Service through the annual real estate tax payment, that money was generated in Monroe County, and there is no reason that money should be spent anywhere but in Monroe County. Mr. Rahe said the way things are going, the rest of this surplus will be burned up in the next three years, to help pay for the St. Clair- Madison County shortfall, and then who knows what the future of the Extension Service programs will be. Commissioner Wittenauer said maybe the County Board needs to work harder to get funding from the other two Counties.
Mr. Rahe said the other problem is that the University continues to say there isn’t a problem, and they do nothing to help, Brian Mueller, member of the Extension Service Board, said he agrees that the problem is with the University, because they don’t look at this as individual Counties, they look at this as a Unit made up of three Counties, and as long as Monroe County keeps throwing in more than their share allowing the other two Counties to ride along, nothing will change.
Commissioner Koerber said she thinks the State’s Attorney needs to take a look at this whole situation to see what can be done. Mr. Rahe said he has also been disappointed because Monroe County Farm Bureau supports the Extension Service, but the Farm Bureaus in the other two Counties don’t care. Chairman Elmore said maybe having the County Board write a letter to the University could help, and then copy the other two Counties on the letter. Commissioner Wittenauer said he has talked with both County Chairmen from the other two Counties, and he said it is so petty that those other Counties don’t pay their share.
Richard Woodcock said this County combination has been in the works for many years, and the Counties had no say in which Counties were combined. He said many of the other combinations previously discussed could have been much worse than what we have right now. He said we also get more than one-third of the benefit of having the main office here in Waterloo. Commissioner Wittenauer said there is no doubt the County Board wants to continue to support and provide funding to the Extension Service, but they just want to make it more equitable among Counties. Mr. Mueller said no one on the Committee is against the Extension Service or the work being done by Ms. Jacobs, but they are unhappy with the inequity in the funding levels of the participating Counties.
Pam Jacobs said she did meet with the State’s Attorney about the lease, he’s reviewed it, and he said there was no problem going to a multi-year lease, and if the dollar amount needs to be revised for successive years, that should not be a problem.
Chairman Elmore said interested partners have met regarding the proposed Enterprise Zone. He said it appears that Columbia, Waterloo and Valmeyer are interested, and Randolph County is meeting later this week to determine their level of interest. Kaskaskia Regional Port District has also shown interest. Chairman Elmore said this will be organized through the Economic Development Corporation.
Chairman Elmore said various representatives were in the area last week from an organized Foreign Trade zone, and they visited various places in Monroe County.
Chairman Elmore said the Economic Development Corporation has been discussing the possibility of developing an industrial park. He said they also have discussed the possibility of putting a quarter percent sales tax on the ballot to fund a revolving loan fund for future development.
Chairman Elmore said Senator Schimpf will be presenting his 4-lane highway bill in committee this week in Springfield.
Commissioner Wittenauer reported that plans are proceeding for the Health Department building. Even though State funding is still a question at this time, the Health Department continues to function healthy financially.
There being no further business to come before the Board, motion to adjourn was made by Commissioner Koerber with a second by Commissioner Wittenauer. All voting Aye, none Nay and none Absent. Motion carried.
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