Building purchase OKd (1/15/04)

The purchase of property for possible jail expansion — discussed more than a few times over the past year by the Jay County Council — finally has been finalized.

Members of the council, who gave final approval Wednesday for the purchase of a building and lot at 215 W. Main St., just north of the jail, were kept busy with several other financial and personnel matters — among them, the selection of new officers.

Republican Jack Houck, who has been elected once after being appointed to the council in the late 1990s, was elected president of the council, replacing Democrat Andy Schemenaur. Republican Marilyn Coleman was selected as vice president.

Republicans hold a 4-3 majority on the council. That edge was 4-2 Wednesday, as Democrat Mark Barnett was unable to attend. The four GOP members (Todd Wickey, George Meehan, Houck and Coleman) voted to approve Houck and Coleman, while Democrats Gerald Kirby and Schemenaur voted no.

The purchase of the building and lot on the southwest corner of West Main and Ship streets — about a block from the courthouse — was given final approval with adoption of an ordinance by the council.

Jay County Commissioners, who are using money generated by a landfill host fee to buy the property at a cost of $163,000, will allow current owner/tenant Jeff Sprunger (Hanni Plumbing and Heating) to occupy the rear (garage) portion for two years for a lease amount of $131 per month.

Jay County Sheriff Todd Penrod has said jail expansion will need to happen sooner rather than later, but Commissioners Milo Miller Jr., Mike Leonhard and Gary Theurer have sounded a more cautious note, saying they likely wouldn’t vote for jail expansion unless forced to by a judge as a result of a lawsuit.

The ordinance was passed by a 4-2 vote Wednesday, with Schemenaur and Houck dissenting.

The only stipulation asked for by the council, at the advice of their attorney George Lopez, was that a more detailed description of the area to be used by Sprunger during the two-year period be attached to the purchase ordinance.

Also Wednesday, members of the council gave tentative approval to requests on personnel/pay issues from the directors of the county’s ambulance service and the public defender office.

Teresa Foster-Geesaman, director of Jay Emergency Medical Service, asked the council to adopt a salary ordinance amendment to pay reserves their hourly rate if they work in excess of five hours on a call shift.

Foster-Geesaman, who had previously discussed the issue with commissioners, told the council that the advent of paramedic service — and a corresponding increase in the amount of hospital-to-hospital transfers — have caused the reserves to be utilized more frequently.

She said that in December, there were a total of 11 call shifts which lasted more than five hours.

Current policy is to pay $45 per call shift regardless of the number of hours worked.

Members of the council did not vote on the issue, but appeared to favor the change.

Also, county public defender Max Ludy got the council’s permission to hire a third contract public defender who would handle a maximum of 50 cases per year at a cost of $20,000. Paying that contract salary will require a transfer of $8,000 and an additional appropriation of $12,000. Those actions will have to be done in February.

Ludy said that the caseload covered by himself and deputy public defender Tom Diller is higher than allowed by state standards.

In 2003, Diller handled 143 public defender cases, while Ludy had 121.

In other business, the council:

•Approved five additional appropriations. The additional money was approved from ambulance replacement fund for an ambulance, $46,000; from the E-911 fund to pay charges from Sprint, $59,400; from the innkeepers’ tax fund to pay for contract services, $45,639.52; from the county disclosure fund for clerical services for the assessor, $6,000; and from the county general fund for cemetery commission maintenance of stones, $100.

The $46,000 in the ambulance replacement fund will be used to pay a portion of the costs of taking a box from a current ambulance and fitting it on a new chassis.

The $59,400 in the 911 fund is to cover a mistake in the 2004 budget. Just $6,000 was budgeted for charges by Sprint for this year, instead of the estimated $66,000 that will be necessary.

The innkeepers’ tax fund is generated by a 5 percent fee imposed on all hotel/motel rooms in the county.

•OK’d transfers for the Jay County Health Department ($450 to equipment from equipment repair, $110.62 to health department Social Security from part-time registrar, and $110.58 to public retirement fund from birth and death certificates) and the Jay County Sheriff’s Department ($187.85 to transport officer from chief deputy). Both votes ratified end-of-year actions taken by Jay County auditor Freda Corwin to correct budgetary mistakes.

•Voted to proceed with a review of all county job descriptions this year. Several years ago, the council agreed to eliminate the pay grade appeals process, but said all jobs would be reviewed every three years. Employees and department heads will fill out detailed job descriptions, and that information will be reviewed by pay plan consultant Maximus Inc.

•Made the following internal appointments: Community corrections board, Wickey; EDIT advisory committee, Schemenaur, Coleman, Meehan and Houck; tax abatement advisory committee, Barnett and Kirby; Jay County Development Corporation, Houck and Wickey; Joint zoning, Meehan; personnel committee, Coleman and Kirby; planning commission, Wickey; road committee, Barnett; solid waste district, Kirby; and public defender, Wickey.

[[In-content Ad]]A request to re-create a part-time position eliminated last year in the county health department was readily approved Wednesday.

But a request to make the pay for that position higher than the rate for other part-time clerical positions in county government drew a much less enthusiastic response from members of the Jay County Council.

Dr. Steve Myron, a former county councilman who was named Jay County health officer late last year following the resignation of Dr. Eugene M. Gillum, said Wednesday that his department needed a part-time registrar to help with general office functions and the preparation of birth and death certificates.

But he said that the county’s part-time rate of $7.33 (Continued on page 2)

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hour would not be sufficient to attract qualified candidates.

Beginning in 2003, part-time employees were removed from the county’s pay plan and were paid specified flat rates.

“I’m believing the type of person we need is going to take $9 an hour,” Myron said Wednesday. “This is not a significantly high rate for these type of skills.”

Councilman Gerald Kirby, who has been the most vocal in his opposition to making exceptions in the pay plan over the past year or two, said “The salary becomes a problem ... you open a Pandora’s box.”

Fellow council member Marilyn Coleman concurred, saying she felt it was unfair — or would be perceived as such — by other regular county part-time employees.

“If you look at one clerical (position), you need to look at them all,” Coleman said.

The county receives a total of $33,000 in Local Health Maintenance and tobacco settlement funds, with about $21,000 used to fund an immunization clinic and Jay County Hospital’s Prime Time program. The $12,000 difference would fund the part-time registrar, Myron said.

Myron said the part-time registrar was cut last year by Gillum during an unsuccessful bid to convert the department’s food inspector to full time. It was the issue that eventually led to Gillum’s resignation.

Members of the council said they would like time to think about the request. Myron said he would return next month.

The council also is considering calling a meeting of the county personnel policy committee to discuss the issue.