County adding to GIS

More data will be added to the county’s geographic information system (GIS).

Jay County Commissioners on Monday approved the expansion of services to add a land use editing tool through 39 Degrees North.

The commissioners also signed a memorandum of understanding with Jay School Corporation for providing a school resource officer and named a new member to the Jay Emergency Medical Service management team.

Jay County assessor Robin Alberson made the request for the addition of the land use editing tool, with Denise Danowski of 39 Degrees North explaining that measuring of land was once done by walking the land. Those measurements are taken electronically. 39 Degrees North has developed tool that allows the assessor’s office to draw land use electronically on the map based on what they see from aerial photography.

“This allows them to get accurate calculations for woodlands, farmland, non-tillable,” said Danowski. “They can put in home sites, drainage, ponds, water. You name it, they can put it in there.”

The system also includes a soils layer, which then calculates each parcel based on what the land is being used for by soil type. That information is saved in order to make access easier and eliminate the need for frequent measuring.

“Over time, it will not only save money and time … but it will give a more fair evaluation of all the parcels in the county,” Danowski added. 

Property record cards will also be added to the system, allowing easier access. (Jay County’s GIS is available online at jayin.elevatemaps.io.)

Commissioners Chuck Huffman, Mike Leonhard and Chad Aker approved the additions at a charge of $1,882 for set up and use for the remainder of 2019. They also OK’d the renewal of the county’s three-year contract, including the upgrades, with 39 Degrees North at an annual cost of $24,195.

Commissioners also signed the MOU with Jay Schools for providing a school resource officer. Adding the full-time position has been in the works for more than a year as part of a push to improve school safety.

A committee of representatives from the sheriff’s office and Jay Schools will make a recommendation of who to choose as the SRO to Sheriff Dwane Ford, who will ultimately make the selection. If the school corporation is unsatisfied with the performance of the SRO, it may ask the sheriff to remove the officer from that position.

The agreement calls for the school resource officer to be on a Jay Schools campus from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily when school is in session. It also lays out the various duties for which the SRO will be responsible, including enforcing federal, state and local laws, investigating crimes originating on campus, developing plans and strategies to minimize dangerous situations, developing a safety plan for outside threats and serving as a liaison between the school corporation and the sheriff’s office. The SRO is generally not expected to be a school disciplinarian.

The MOU will now go to Jay County Council for approval Wednesday.

Commissioners also named Wesley Miller to take over as part of a three-person management team for Jay Emergency Medical Service. He replaces Emily Anderson, who resigned recently, and joins Gary Barnett and John McFarland. Anderson plans to take classes through Ivy Tech toward obtaining a degree in nursing.

McFarland also reported that billing through Accumed Systems has improved since he made a visit to the Michigan-based company, but added that JEMS has encountered resistance from Indiana University Health Jay Hospital when it comes to getting preauthorization for transfers. Commissioners asked that McFarland continue working with the hospital on the issues, suggesting he contact director of nursing operations Christina Schemenaur.

Acting as the drainage board, Huffman, Leonhard and Aker heard from surveyor Brad Daniels that work is planned along county road 100 North in the area of county road 200 East to help alleviate drainage problems in that area. Daniels said several residents have committed to contributing financially to the project.

Also heard from Daniels that surveyor’s office crews are working on terracing a section of the Salamonie River’s banks on the southwest side of the city.

In other business, the commissioners:

•Named Hope Confer as acting director of Jay County Retirement Center. She replaces former director Amanda Cox.

•Approved the purchase of kiosks for needle drop off at a cost of $2,723, with one to be placed in Portland and another in Dunkirk. The commissioners and Heath Butz of the health department briefly discussed where the outdoor kiosks could be placed. The courthouse grounds was suggested as one option, but no final decisions were made.

•Approved the following: the purchase of a touchscreen panel for the health department from Promethean at a cost of $4,349; a contract with health department preparedness coordinator Amy Blakeley at a rate of $1,250 per month; a reaffirmation agreement for road use and drainage related to Bitter Ridge Wind Farm; new per diem rates for county employees who travel for work; the extension of the end date of a Department of Homeland Security grant to Aug. 30, 2020; and a contract with Basic ACA Elevate for reporting of data related to the Affordable Care Act.

•Terminated its elevator inspection contract with Oracle Elevator Company for Jay County Retirement Center. Melodi Haley, the retirement center’s new financial advisor, pointed out last month that the county was being billed $759 per month for inspections.

•Signed a bridge maintenance agreement with Darke County for a bridge on State Line Road. Jay County is also working on an agreement with Mercer County for six shared bridges. The counties have cooperated together for decades to maintain the bridges along the state line, but the Indiana and Ohio departments of transportation wanted to have those agreements in writing in order to make sure inspections were not being duplicated, explained county engineer Dan Watson.

•Decided to have a highway department mower repaired in-house rather than sending it back to Hoosier Equipment in Plymouth. The county previously sent another mower for repair but was not satisfied with the work.

•Heard a request from Ford for the purchase of a new transport vehicle to replace a Chevrolet Impala with about 140,000 miles. He was considering a used 2018 van from Moser Motors. He was asked to return to commissioners with quotes.

Ford also talked with commissioners about the possibilities for replacing a dishwasher at the jail, including buying new or having one provided on contract via a company that provides cleaning agents. He was again asked to return with details about each option.

•Agreed to accept the donation of a four-station sandbagging machine at a value of $10,500 from FCC (Indiana). Also accepted a grant of equipment for the coroner’s office and donations of $1,596.33 from the Jay County Retirement Center carnival and $300 from General Shanks Elementary School for the sheriff’s office’s K-9 unit.

•Discussed courthouse security, with Culy reporting that the county’s personnel committee would like to have one full-time and one part-time security officer for the facility beginning Jan. 1.

•Reported that the county received a bonus payment of $37,200 from NextEra Energy Resources. The bonus is part of the county’s economic development agreement and is based on the number of megawatt hours generated.

•Learned from county attorney Bill Hinkle that Scout Clean Energy has agreed to the inspection contract for Bitter Ridge Wind Farm. The agreement calls for paying county engineer Dan Watson an additional $15,000, Jay/Portland Building and Planning director John Hemmelgarn an additional $10,000 and county surveyor Brad Daniels an additional $5,000 for work related to the construction of the facility.

•Heard from highway department superintendent Donnie Corn that 73 miles of county roads have undergone chip-and-seal work thus far this summer. Plans call for another 28 miles to be completed this year.

•Discussed the possibility of getting an insurance policy to protect the county against financial losses related with cyber attacks. Culy said she is working on getting quotes. She pointed out that Vigo County was hit with a ransomware attack last month. LaPorte County was also hit in July and paid $132,000 to hackers in order to get its system back up and running.

•Set a special meeting for 3 p.m. Wednesday.