September 21, 2021 Tuesday 9:00 am
The Bourbon County Commission met in open session with all three Commissioners, the County Counselor, and the County Clerk present.
Also present were the following: (some were present for a portion of the meeting, and some were present for the entire meeting) Susan Bancroft, Jason Silvers, Anne Dare, Kim Simons, and Clint Walker.
Clifton made a motion to approve the minutes from the previous meeting, Jim seconded and all approved.
Eric Bailey stated there were a couple of permits that needed addressed. The first one is for Chip Gross at 210th South of Eagle and it is an extension, they put in new gates and the existing culverts are too short. There person leasing the land ran off the end of the culvert and had to be pulled out. Jim made a motion to approve an extension for public works at 210th S of Eagle for Mr. Gross, Clifton seconded and all approved.
Eric stated the second permit is for fiber optic for a cell phone company to run to a cell phone tower up on Kansas just to the west of 230th. We caught them trying to bury their fiber optic 3 inches below the pavement, so they are going to bring us all in and do it right. Jim asked the company name and Eric said it is Concordia Wireless. Jim made a motion to allow Concordia Wireless to place fiber optic in our right of way at 230th and Kansas area and follow our guidelines for installation, boring, or whatever our details are, Clifton seconded and all approved. The Commissioners signed the permits.
Eric stated that they have bids for the mini excavator. Clifton opened the bids:
KC Bobcat:
E88 R2 series, 65 hp for $87,930.18
E88 R2 series, 65 hp for $92,634.18 Dustin stated that this one has counterweight and a longer arm is the reason for the price difference.
2-year warranty
State Tractor and Equipment:
Sany SY80U 73 hp Finance price is $79,256.00 and a cash price is $75,256.00
5-year warranty includes parts, labor, and travel time
Jim asked if a quote was bid with a weight classification or hp or both? Dustin responded that it was by weight and was 19,000 pounds.
Murphy Tractor:
2021 John Deere 85G, $108,800.00
5-year warranty
Jim asked if an extended warranty was part of the bid. Eric said it was not the warranty is whatever comes with them.
Berry Tractor:
Komatsu PC88MR-11, 68 HP for $112,555.00
1-year full coverage warranty
Foley Cat:
308CRS, powertrain 3.3 diesel, 65 hp for $136,817.27
2-year warranty you can get an extended warranty but that is not in the bid
Jim asked the Sany representative if they have a service truck out in the field. The representative said they have 2 that are out of Kansas City, KS and they travel within a 300-mile radius of their shop.
Jim asked Eric if he wanted time to review the bids or if he wanted a decision this morning. Eric responded that he is ready for a decision now if they want to do that and Sany wins the low bid either way you go. Eric said that Sany did bring it down to demo. Jim said that even if you do decide today that he recommends that they look over the bids and make sure that they are apples to apples. Jim said that he went to a bid opening once and low bid it and it didn’t have a cab and it made a little difference, not saying these do but it does happen. Eric said that they brought a demo down and it has been here for 3-4 weeks, and a majority of people have had a chance to operate it and they see no problems with that piece of equipment. Jim asked what engine brand it has. The Sany representative responded that it is a Cummins, 5-year 5,000 hour warranty that one is made overseas, but we do have a facility in Georgia with 20 million dollars in parts, so if we can’t get it in Kansas City, we can get it pretty quick.
Lynne asked if that was Eric’s recommendation. Eric responded yes, Sany is his recommendation, the SY80, they were the low bid.
Jim asked how long these machines have been out in the field, 20 years, 15 years’ experience. The Sany representative responded about 10 years. Jim said that is pretty good.
Clifton made a motion to move forward with the low bid on the Sany SY80 machine after he reviews the bids again. Lynne asked if it was cash. Clifton said it was his understanding that this money was budgeted last year. Eric responded that it was budgeted for 2021 and was $40,000.00 a year for 5 years, actually it was $42,500.00. Jim said that was for a backhoe, truck and a trailer. Eric said yes it was for 3 pieces. Dustin said they have found a truck, they were going to get a F750 but ended up with a International but same truck and mileage but this one has a plow and a salt box with it and he has been in touch with the guy from Kansas City to hopefully still check the truck out when it comes in. Clifton questioned if they had the cash. Eric said we have the money in our budget to finance it. It is 0 percent. The Sany representative verified that it is 0 percent for 48, 0.99 for 60. Jim said that if you are $5,000.00 higher on the finance it can’t be 0 percent. The representative clarified that the cash price is cheaper because there is a discount for the cash price.
Lynne stated that the motion is on the table to move forward with the Sany deal. Clifton said that he still questions if there is cash to pay for the equipment. Susan said that if you are buying more than one piece of equipment that you should finance it. Clifton said he would like to add that we need to finance to his motion. Jim suggested going to a local bank and getting a loan to get the discounted cash price but since it is 0 percent it would probably be a wash.
Lynne asked for 2nd to Clifton’s motion to move forward with the low bid from Sany on the SY80 with financing, Clifton said there was no second, Lynne seconded and asked for discussion.
Jim said “I would like the record to reflect in the minutes that I do not support this machine for the purpose of number one, we are scratching for money to give pay raises but more important to me is that we have a backhoe and two motor graders that could come up in the next few years, and they may not but we have to speculate that they could and that is $700,000.00. I am not trying to run Eric’s department because if I wanted to run it I wouldn’t have retired, but I just don’t think this is something we can afford. I would rather see this money go for pay raises because we have a large excavator and to call this one a mini is really stretching, it is right on the boarder and you can call it mini, but I don’t support it because I just think we have so many more obligations that we need to address and I would like the minutes to reflect that.”
Clifton stated that we have roads to take care of and culverts to put in so his vote is aye.
Jim said that a mini is not going to be the savior of the culverts, but that’s alright to look at it that way.
Lynne said that we have gotten 3 grants in the last year and recovered about $300,000.00 of FEMA money and FEMA money can be used for whatever we need for taking care of the problems we had. We approved a budget for a bridge crew to address some of our bridge problems and we have been discussing this for about a year and feel that this is a good way to move forward with some of the projects and keep an eye on our replacement of the culverts and fixing bridges and we are moving forward fairly quickly, so that is my comments.
Lynne asked all in favor aye, Clifton and Lynne approved, Jim opposed, motion carries.
Eric said that the asphalt is completed from Arrowhead & 250th all the way to 245th in the track and them we went to Garland and there at the water tower there was a bad spot and that has been fixed and all of that equipment is being moved to 125th and they will start removing the shoulders today. He said they are crushing as hard and fast as they can and building up rock and will start on Monday on 125th. Jim said that they did a good job on 250th. Lynne asked Eric to look at Yale Rd up in that area where they had dug up some holes. Dustin said he went up there Friday and they are rough but not as rough as before they milled them but they do need attention and will check them out once they finish 125th. Clifton asked if this was the road that has a heavy truck running down it and why. Eric said that it is and the authorities have been notified and are going to monitor that area. Dustin said he would recommend to mill that road up and do it right. After discussion they are going to wait and stay with the original plan that has already been approved from Hidden Valley to the bottom of the hill.
Eric said that they went and checked out the Mack truck and it checked out nice and as soon as they get the check they will go pick it up. He said that that they are getting ready for another blast out at Thomas Quarry but there is a lot of overburden, there is some rock left over that we should be able to crush as well. Eric said there will be some expense with moving that. Jim recommended renting a haul truck.
Dustin said that 145th between Birch and Calvary, about a quarter mile off Birch to the north there is a concrete box culvert that has been hit and split in half and the west end of it is falling off. It is probably going to have to be torn out and replaced with a big tube. Jim asked how big it is. Dustin said it is about eight foot wide and 4 foot deep with a solid rock bottom, the road has been shut down for now until they can address the problem.
Eric said that 125th and Wagon they are meeting with the engineer tomorrow and they will start getting that beam placed back in underneath and the bridge back open to its full width. Roadside mowing everything from 125th west & 215th east is complete and now we are working through the middle and that will give everything one go around and then after it freezes, we will go back through and hit everything one more time and be done. We did have some issues where we got into some fence post and we will go back and repair the fence. Also if people have issues please use the website to report it or call and report it please don’t use Facebook, we don’t always see Facebook.
Eric said they would like to promote Andy Johnson to Noxious Weed Director but with the state guidelines they really need a motion to do that.
Jim said he would be glad to make that motion, he is very familiar with Andy and he will do a great job. Jim made a motion to promote Andy Johnson to Noxious Weed Director, Clifton seconded, all approved.
Eric said that Andy is going to continue doing some mowing as well but that goes hand in hand with noxious weed.
Eric said that there are some reports that need to be submitted to the state from the last four years to get caught up and in compliance.
Eric said that there are 4 components of the windmill not 3. He said there are 4 completed in Bourbon County and 8 bases. Their top out crane was hit by lightning but that is back up and running now. They a have also started reclaiming on the ones that they have finished and they are following our road use agreement. Eric also stated that if there is an entrance on a property that a landowner wants to keep, then they will need to fill out a field entrance permit and I will bring that to the commission for approval if you want to approve it.
He also said that KDOT has on Sept 29th Highway 39 from 40th to Highway 3 will be closed for a couple of hours to get a crane across the road. It will mid-morning after the school busses and before noon.
Eric said that the Grant that they applied for to replace the bridge 1 mile west and 2.8 miles north of Pawnee Station has been selected to be eligible for funding as part of the Kansas Department of Transportation federal fiscal year 2023 off system bridge program. The total cost was $405,000.00 and our share would be $79,000.00 but not to exceed $120,000.00. Eric said he has the 1302 form that has to be turned back into KDOT by November 1st, they will need to fill out. Eric said they are going to use the federal fund exchange money to pay for that. Lynne said they have discussed this for a long time and feels they should move forward.
Jim made a motion to work with the public works director and the state of Kansas for a bridge replacement at 15.0-U.2 with a grant on off-road system not to exceed counties cost of $120,000.00, Clifton seconded, all approved.
Justin Meeks said that he followed up on the CIC discussion and Shane Walker has been in contact with CIC. Shane wants permission to pay the CIC contract and then Eric with his own budget authority is looking at a different type of software that better integrates his systems and work product than CIC can do at this time.
Clifton made a motion to pay the CIC contract, Jim seconded and all approved.
Eric stated that what they are looking at is what they are using in Linn County, it has much more capability for their department than CIC.
Justin said that there has been discussion about a public/private partnership to fix up Elm Creek. There is grant money that could be available due to the historical value. Clifton said that some private individuals would like to make repairs on their own. Justin said that they would have to sign a waiver. Eric said they have to get the permits before anything can be done out there. Justin said that maybe Rob Harrington could help with the grant process.
Jim made a motion to allow Eric Bailey, County Counselor Meeks, and to ask Rob Harrington to help in a joint private/county partnership for Elm Creek shelters and cabins, Clifton seconded, all approved.
Jim made a motion for an executive session under KSA 75-4319b-1 to discuss matters of individual non-elected personnel to protect their privacy regarding production for 10 minutes with all three commissioners and Susan. Clifton seconded and said they will return to the commission room at 10:03, all approved.
Jim made a motion to return to regular session with no action, Clifton seconded, all approved.
Counselor Comments: Justin said that he is getting some information on the opioid litigation, it is still an active case, but it is progressing. The second thing is the tax sale, he talked to Patty yesterday and he uploaded a bunch of stuff on Saturday, and he has to change a couple of things for the judge to make sure that she is comfortable with some things. We’re progressing, it might be delayed one week but it is coming soon.
Susan stated that she thinks that they should officially approve the budget.
Clifton made a motion to approve the 2022 budget of $18,144,771.00 and $7,127,242.00, Jim seconded, all approved.
Susan said she would also like to entertain a work session to discuss wages, to just really go over each category, look at wage bands, and look at the study provided by Sheriff Martin. She said it might take several weeks to get through all of it. Jim asked if the elected officials and department heads will be invited. Susan said she could talk to the departments and get some dates and bring them back at next week’s meeting.
Public comment: Clint Walker stated that the mower operators are doing a good job and you really need to build fence before you can fix it. Clint also informed that there is a rash of theft of catalytic converts in the area.
Anne Dare asked for clarification on the 18 million figures on the budget. Lynne said that was budgeted authority for expenses.
Elected official comment: The County Clerk asked for the use of the commission room for elections starting October 20th to November 3rd. Lynne said there is concern with the audio equipment being moved around too much. Ashley stated that since it is a smaller election that we could probably make it work and set it up so that the equipment would not have to be unhooked.
Clifton made a motion for the County Clerk to have use of the commission room on Oct 26th and Nov 2nd for election and to work with Mr. Walker regarding moving of equipment, Jim seconded, all approved.
Commissioner comments: Clifton expressed there has been some negativity on Facebook, but he would like to give an update on the hospital, there have been questions on how the study is going. The study is still ongoing in the county, they are continuing to do their due diligence and have an expected due date of sometime in November at which time they will start having some town halls if necessary. They are still doing their feasibility study and there are multiple people in town whether we know it or not, which I think is good if we don’t. One thing I think people should understand is that that the money they are using to do the study, a very large percent of the money is being spent in Fort Scott at hotels, restaurants, and gas stations. They are actively doing that study in town, so just putting it out there that it is still ongoing, and I hear it may be good news and I and optimistic it will be good news for our community.
Jim stated that he is planning to attend the Gordon Parks event in October and if any of the other commissioners are planning to attend, we would need a motion to allow that. Jim made a motion to allow all three of the commissioners to attend the Gordon Parks Learning Tree Revisited Luncheon at 11:50 at the community college on October 7th, Clifton seconded, all approved.
Clifton made a motion to amend the agenda to allow an executive session, Jim seconded, all approved.
Clifton made a motion to go into executive session under KSA 75-4319b-4 to discuss data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trusts, and individual proprietorships for that very reason to protect their privacy, we will go in for 15 minutes and return at 10:34 and it will include all 3 commissioners, Justin Meeks, and Rob Harrington; Jim seconded, all approved.
Clifton made a motion to return to regular session at 10:34 with no action, Jim seconded, all approved.
Clifton made a motion to amend the agenda to allow County Treasurer Patty Love to speak, Jim seconded, all approved.
Patty said that she has the 2020 delinquent property taxes and that we bid off and what that means is that we bid them off to the county commissioner and after October 1st they become delinquent officially and then 2-3 years after that they qualify for the tax sale if still unpaid. Patty said she also needs new signatures for the checking accounts due to the recent changes.
Jim made a motion to adjourn, Clifton seconded, all approved.
THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
OF BOURBON COUNTY, KANSAS
(ss) Lynne Oharah, Chairman
(ss) Jim Harris, Commissioner
(ss) Clifton Beth, Commissioner
ATTEST:
Ashley Shelton, Bourbon County Deputy Clerk
September 28, 2021, Approved Date