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STATE OF WYOMING ) LANDER, WYOMING ) ss. OFFICE OF THE FREMONT COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COUNTY OF FREMONT ) April 8, 2008 The Board of Fremont County Commissioners met in Regular Session at 9:00 a.m. with the following members present: Chairman Douglas L. Thompson, Vice-Chairman Pat Hickerson, Jane Adamson and Keja Whiteman. Commissioner Heckart was absent for personal reasons. Also present was County Clerk and Clerk of the Board Julie A. Freese. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to approve the Agenda. Motion carried unanimously. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to approve the minutes of the Regular Meeting held April 1, 2008. Motion carried unanimously. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to accept the bills for payment. Commissioner Whiteman abstained. Motion carried.
Keja Whiteman moved, Jane Adamson seconded, to accept Voucher No. 040808L to Lander Valley Medical Center in the amount of $18,200 for Title 25 patients. Motion carried unanimously. The following items in the Signature File were reviewed: 1) Letters of recognition to individuals receiving the rank of Eagle Scout in Dubois Boy Scout Troup 4056 (Jeremy Brandl, Levi Vanuga, James Barr, Liam Collins, Henry Collins and Robert Betts); and 2) Letter to Bureau of Reclamation requesting right-of-way on River Bottom Road. Change Order No. 3, submitted by GSG Architecture for the Help for Health Hospice Home, was reviewed for a total increase of $1,460.50 as a result of a modification to storage casework and kitchen cabinets ($557.00), provide additional cable TV outlet in living room - $522.50 and add dry land grass, plantings and irrigation west of fenced area - $1,485.00. Keja Whiteman moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to approve Change Order No. 3 for an additional $1,460.50. Motion carried unanimously. The following Licenses for New Construction or Utility Crossing or Encroachment submitted by Johnson Farms for Ocean Lake Road and Rocky Mountain Power for Webbwood Road, and Application/Permits to Construct Access Driveway submitted by Art Reynolds for Riverview Cutoff and Delta Petroleum Corporation for Badwater Road were reviewed. Pat Hickerson moved, Jane Adamson seconded, to approve the Licenses and Permits as submitted. Motion carried unanimously. Pat Hickerson moved, Jane Adamson seconded, to approve a renewal Dubois Maintenance Shop Agreement with the Dubois Fire District. Motion carried unanimously. Pat Hickerson moved, Jane Adamson seconded, to approve Resolution 2008-06. Motion carried unanimously.
RESOLUTION 2008-06
WHEREAS, Fremont County applies to the State Lands and Investments Board for direct distribution funding and county block grant funding; and
WHEREAS, such funding sources were appropriated in Sections 328 and 329 of the General Governmental Appropriations act signed into law by Governor Freudenthal on March 5, 2008; and
WHEREAS, the following restrictions apply to this funding source:
“Any political subdivision which impedes the establishment of any Necessary cellular tower or other equipment site required for the WyoLink interoperable public safety communication system on Any property owned by that political subdivision shall not be Eligible to receive monies distributed under this section.”
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that Fremont County will not impede the establishment of WyoLink communications systems on property owned in Fremont County. DATED this 8th day of April, 2008.
BOARD OF FREMONT COUNTY COMMISSIONERS /s/ Douglas L. Thompson, Chairman /s/ Pat Hickerson, Vice-Chairman /s/ Jane Adamson /s/ Keja Whiteman ATTEST: /s/ Julie A. Freese, Fremont County Clerk Diane Corsick, representing the Wyoming Conservation Voters Education Fund, distributed a brochure compiled by the Wyoming Association of Churches titled “On Sacred Ground: Faith and the Environment”. The brochure is a compilation of comments from participants attending a workshop held in Lander in September of 2007 that was focused on earth stewardship. Comments from the group participants (covering most areas of the state) were addressed in the brochure and actions requested from local elected officials were reviewed as a voice of the people throughout Wyoming. County Planner Ray Price was joined by developers Kenneth and Linda Johnson who presented a proposed plat for a five lot simple subdivision located northwest of Lander at the end of North Fork Road. It was recommended for approval by the Planning Commission on a four to one vote as one Planning Commission member felt that lot 2 did not have an adequate building site. Comments were heard from several landowners regarding their concern for wildlife habitat. Pat Hickerson moved, Keja Whiteman seconded, to approve the Old Johnson Place Subdivision as approved by the Planning Commission. Voting against the motion: Jane Adamson. Motion carried. Deputy County Treasurer Jim Massman and Vehicle Maintenance Supervisor Glen Steers reviewed issues relating to an earlier discussion with the City of Lander to utilize the County fuel pumps. A background of the fuel system, fuel and other related costs were outlined in a memo presented to the Board. Based upon all the issues, they recommended the County offer to sell fuel to the City of Lander at the County’s delivered cost plus $.15 per gallon. If the City accepts the offer, a service agreement should be drawn up that describes the terms and conditions of the arrangement. They further recommended the County charge a one time setup fee of $1,000 that would be refundable upon their purchase of 50,000 gallons of fuel. Steers presented a cost detail (as of April 8, 2008) indicating unleaded county fuel is $2.73 and the $.15 suggested surcharge would be a total of $2.88; diesel county fuel costs is $3.41 and the $.15 surcharge would be $3.56. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to offer the City of Lander to purchase County fuel plus $.15 per gallon, effective July 1, 2008. Motion carried unanimously. Steers has also spoken to Riverton City officials who have expressed an interest as well. Massman further recommended the Board consider an across the board surcharge to all County departments and other entities using the fuel pumps. In a related matter, Glen Steers presented a Wyoming Department of Transportation Fuel System Agreement that will allow County access to state fuel pumps across the State. The Agreement was initially sought so that the Dubois WYDOT pumps could be used; however, the Agreement will allow the county to access other areas as well where WYDOT pumps are available. Pat Hickerson moved, Keja Whiteman seconded, to approve the Agreement. Motion carried unanimously. County Coroner Ed McAuslan presented a quarterly report. To date, there have been 84 recorded deaths in Fremont County for the first quarter of 2008, of which 63% were Coroner cases. Among these cases, 29% were “non-natural”. Of those, the number of accidental deaths is 10, suicide is 4, homicide is 2 (both motor vehicle). Motor vehicle/traffic deaths total 9, including 7 accidental. One death is a result of an ATV accident, one a snowmobile accident and 55.5% of the total involved alcohol and/or drugs, which is consistent with last year’s rate. There are currently five cases pending autopsy or investigation. McAuslan stated a positive note that this is the fourth year in a row without any youth suicide (age 17 and under). Both general suicide and homicide numbers are down slightly. Drugs and alcohol related deaths accounted for 13% of the Coroner cases, 44% of the non-natural deaths (down from 2007 totals of 19% and 59%, respectively). Fremont County Recreation Commission members Jeremy Hernandez, Ron Cunningham, Don Reynolds, Robert Hague and Joyce Dockham and Deputy County Attorney Jodi Darrough were present to discuss issues related to Rails to Trails. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to adjourn into Executive Session regarding potential property acquisition. Motion carried unanimously. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to return to Regular Session. Motion carried unanimously. County Clerk Julie Freese and Financial Assistant Mike Stalder reviewed preliminary budget hearing information. The hearing will be advertised for the April 22nd meeting. Tribal Employment Rights Office (TERO) Director Sonny St.Clair and staff members Francene Shakespeare, Stanford St. Clair, Casaundra Burnett, Alfred Burson and Dennis O’Neal visited with the Board regarding the program. Sonny St.Clair stated the Shoshone and Arapaho Tribes adopted Resolution #4967 on March 10, 1982 establishing the TERO program, of which over 300 programs exist nationwide. The tribes most recently approved Resolution No. 2008-9881 increasing the TERO fees from ½ of 1% to 2% to be competitive to national TERO averages. This program is the only one of its kind as two tribes are served. He further stated that training is the main focal point of the program and they have a list of trained individuals who are seeking employment. Compliance issues were discussed for contractors on the Wind River Indian Reservation. The businesses need to work through TERO for a temporary work permit or an annual permit. The increased TERO fees will help fund development and work force training and scholarship opportunities as well as a facility to offer trainings. An informational folder was presented to the Board members for their review. The Board thanked the group for the presentation and indicated their intent to notify the TERO office of county vacancies as part of their routine advertising procedures. Budget hearings were held with the cities and towns as members of the Fremont County Association of Goverments in regard to their Capital Projects requests, totaling $2,684,886.86. Present were Lander Mayor Mick Wolfe, Lander Public Works Director Mickey Simmons, Lander Economic Development Director Gary Michaud, Riverton City Administrator Carter Napier, Hudson Mayor Jake Hamon, FCAG Director Pamela Canham, Dubois Town Councilman Brian Gustafson Dubois Town Maintenance Supervisor Tim Hayes to request funding for Capital Projects in their communities as follows: Dubois - Purchase of sewer jetter trailer - $41,796.00 Their current unit is a 1966 model. There have been court cases regarding liability for backups into homes so they would like to replace this unit. Although the cost of a replacement is $55,729, they are only requesting help with $41,796. Hudson - Phase I Water Treatment Plant - $2,103,554.64 Hudson - Make up funds for sewer line projects - $35,536.22 The Town requested a portion of the funds granted last year be redirected to complete the wastewater lagoon project. Their second request is the water project which is the construction of a water treatment plant, additional storage tank and replacement of the existing well field. Because of the size of this project, Mayor and council realize this may be completed into two phases. Due to the EPA administrative order that Hudson is under, they need to find a new source of drinking water for their community. Since they have tight time constraints under the EPA order, they would like to get assistance for the water treatment portion of their request first. Lander - Rural Waterhouse Replacement - $100,000.00 The current facility was built in 1955 and needs constant maintenance. Many rural families utilize this waterhouse to haul water to their homes and the demand is steadily increasing. A new facility would be built in the same location and would improve the ability of the City to provide services for all vehicle sizes and storage tanks. They would install heated concrete pads to decrease ice buildup in the winter. Pavillion—Road Paving of three streets - $300,000.00 The Mayor and council have identified many streets in Pavillion as needing sewer lines and paving. They ask the Commission to help with $300,000 worth of paving costs. They anticipate that overall, they need $250,000 in sewer line replacements and $700,000 in paving. Riverton—Fairground Water & Sewer Improvements - $60,000.00 Recently, the Fair Board met with the Riverton Mayor and council regarding the deficiencies in the water and sewer mains that serve the Fairgrounds. The City of Riverton proposes to construct a new 8” PVC sanitary sewer commencing near the south east corner of the fairgrounds and running north to the service lines coming from the County Office Buildings. The new line will be west of the storm drain and will intercept all of the sewer lines servicing the existing Fair Buildings. Additionally, the water line funning from Fairgrounds Drive to the Livestock Auction would be replaced with a new 8” PVC water main to better serve and protect the Fairground properties. Their request is a 50% match of $60,000 of a $120,000 project. Shoshoni—Wastewater Dechlorination and Sodium Disinfection Project - $44,000.00 The town recently had a Master Plan completed and their #1 priority project is the installation of a dechlorination facility for the Town’s Wastewater lagoons. This must be accomplished to avoid violation of DEQ permits. The project cost would be $35,000. The use of liquid sodium hypochlorite would eliminate the use of chlorine gas and would be safer and easier to handle and relatively inexpensive to install at a cost of $9,000. FCAG Dues Budget Request: Last year was $5,225. This year’s request is $9,000. The only other fees that are generated by the Association are administrative fees from the Community Service Block Grants and a small interest stream from the WYOSTAR account. The workload has increased where they feel they could utilize their part time person more than part time. They also have not had any wage increases for the director or assistant for the past 4 years. In 1986 the county was paying $9,000 in dues and they request the county return to those dues amounts. Commissioner Hickerson mentioned setting a date for State Lands and Investments Board Consensus Block Grant meeting in order to prioritize projects. Tentative dates were discussed for the near future. Commissioner Whiteman reviewed a draft Memorandum of Understanding between the Fremont County Commissioners and the Shoshone and Arapaho Tribes regarding rights-of-ways on the Wind River Indian Reservation to include Burma, Clothesline, Cooper, Cowboy Lane, Davidson, Hoot Owl, Klocke, Marlett Spur, Mazet, Riverview, Sand Rock, South Hidden Valley and Two Valley. The intent of the Agreement is to provide seamless maintenance on the roads serving all county residents. Discussion was held to possibly include ownership, fencing, level of maintenance, etc. The draft will be presented to the Tribal Transportation Department staff the following day for review. Several entities will need to approve the Agreement prior to finalization. In addition to working on road issues, she attended the Hudson Community Assessment meeting last week as well as the Burma Road public meeting. Fremont County Library Director Jill Rourke informed the Board of the need for technical infrastructure for the new Lander Library. The additional $200,000 was not included in the original bid amount and she reviewed an option to fund the project with excess tax funds. These are funds that will be held by the Treasurer following the cut off of the tax once $5,900,000 is collected. The Board requested she submit a change order for the additional project as the contingency fund in place is for such overages. Chairman Thompson reported that the public meeting held the previous night regarding the Burma Road project was very well attended. Several new ideas came out of the meeting. Commissioner Adamson attended an Adult Drug Court meeting in Riverton. Interviews will be held on April 11, 2008 for a new director. Vice-Chairman Hickerson attended a substance abuse meeting in Riverton and will travel to Bozeman, Montana later in the week for a Grizzly Bear Coordinating Committee meeting. A request by Mountain View Cemetery District to allow their employees to be part of Fremont County’s insurance plan was discussed. The Board will request input from the Executive Health Committee prior to responding to the request. A request from Ambulance Director Lauri Wempen was reviewed to write off $1,025.91 for services to inmates incarcerated at the Fremont County Detention Facility, as they could not find no other payor financially responsible for the services rendered. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to approve writing off $1,025.91. Motion carried. Commissioner Whiteman was unavailable for the vote. The Board reviewed a letter of resignation from Fremont County Planning Commission Chairman Bob Joslin, effective June 20, 2008. Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to accept the resignation with sincere regret. Motion carried unanimously. There being no further business, Jane Adamson moved, Pat Hickerson seconded, to adjourn the meeting at 3:20 p.m. and reconvene on April 22, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. Motion carried unanimously.
/s/ DOUGLAS L. THOMPSON, CHAIRMAN FREMONT COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
/s/ JULIE A. FREESE, COUNTY CLERK AND CLERK OF THE BOARD
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