NOTICE OF MEETING

Otoe County Courthouse

Nebraska City NE  68410

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Regular meeting of the Otoe County Commissioners of Otoe County, Nebraska will be held at 8:30 o’clock a.m. on October 23, 2007, in the County Courtroom (108) of the Otoe County Courthouse.  The meeting will be open to the public.  An agenda for each meeting is kept continuously current, and is available for public inspection at the office of the County Clerk at the Courthouse, but the agenda may be modified at such meetings to include items of an emergency nature only.

 

AGENDA OF THE NEXT MEETING                                          OCTOBER 23, 2007

        

         8:30 a.m. -- Open Meeting; call roll; accept agenda; accept minutes from  

                                previous meetings; audit and sign payroll claims and regular claim

 

8:35 a.m. – Rick Sedersten: Discussion and/or action RE: Proposals for AC in the Communication                 room.

                

         8:45 a.m. – Dave Schmitz, Zoning Administrator

1. Public Hearing: Prairie Winds Subd located in the SE ¼ SW ¼ 31-9-9 requested by Eldon Schroder

            2. Public Hearing: H&H Acres Subd located in the SE ¼ NE1/4 30-9-11 requested by Robert & Beverly

                        Morris, Dennis & Deanne McGraw and Ronald & Karen Reimer

            3. Public Hearing: Heine Subd located in the NE ¼ NW ¼ 20-9-12 requested by James & Lori Heine

            4. Public Hearing: Preliminary Plat for Davis Creek Subd located in the SE ¼ 11-8-11 requested by

                        Steve & Joyce Davis

            5. Public Hearing: Preliminary and Final Plat for Hamilton Place Subd located in the NW ¼ SW ¼ 4-9-9

                        requested by Jerry & Teresa Swarts

            6. Discussion and/or action to adopt Resolution amending zoning regulations

 

         9:15 a.m.  -- Discussion and/or action regarding other road and bridge matters

              a)

              b)

                

       10:00 a.m. – Jim Johnston, Heather Bakula, Mark Easter, NCTC: Review forensic accounting report

                       

       10:15 a.m. – Carol Bruggeman, Village Clerk of Dunbar: Discussion and/or action regarding request to enter

                        into an agreement with the County to provide building inspection services for the Village

 

      

                     

        Other business matters to address when time allows:

Andrea Walters, Co Assessor: Tax list corrections; Discussion and/or action RE: Charges for updating

    Information in plat book

                    Discussion and/or action RE: A policy to prorate the probationary period for eligibility of insurance

                        benefits when an employee moves from a part-time to a full-time position

                    Marv Pesek, GA Administrator: Discussion General Assistance Applications/Cases (Executive Session)

                    Discussion and/or action RE: Consideration of Communication RFP

                    Miscellaneous Correspondence and other matters that may come before the Board

.                                                                                                                                              

Immediately following adjournment from regular session, the County Board of Commissioners will convene as the Board of Equalization to discuss and/or take action RE: Board notice(s) for change(s) in valuation

 

Janene Bennett

                                                                                                                                                Otoe County Clerk

 

The County Board reserves the right to go into executive session when and if they deem it necessary.

Individuals requiring physical or sensory accommodations, including interpreter service, Braille, large print or recorded materials, please contact Janene Bennett, County Clerk, Otoe County Courthouse, P O Box 249, Nebraska City, NE 68410, (402) 873-9505), no later than 12:00 noon the day before the meeting.      

 

 

 

OCTOBER 23, 2007

 

The Otoe County Board of Commissioners convened in regular session at 8:30 a.m. on October 23, 2007 to audit and sign payroll claims and regular claims and to take care of such other matters as are on the agenda for this meeting. Advance notice of this meeting was published in the Nebraska City News Press and Syracuse Journal Democrat, announced on the local radio station KNCY and posted in three public places.  This meeting was open to the Public; the agenda was kept current, and is on file for public inspection at the office of the Otoe County Clerk during regular business hours.

 

The meeting was called to order by the Chairman of the Board Joy W Schroder.  Answering present at roll call were Commissioner Schroder, Commissioner Thummel and Commissioner Haverty. None absent

 

Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to accept the agenda as posted. Voting -- Commissioners Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye. Motion carried.

 

Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to accept the minutes from the previous meeting as mailed to them and not have them read. Voting – Commissioners Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye. Motion carried.

 

Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to audit and sign payroll claims and regular claims as presented, with the exception of claim #2422 payable to Steve Mercure. Voting – Commissioners Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye. Motion carried.

 

Chairman Schroder informed the pubic in attendance that a current copy of the Open Meetings Act is posted on the south wall of the Courtroom.  Additional copies are available upon request. He asked that all attendees turn off their cell phones while present in the meeting room.

 

Rick Sedersten, Courthouse Custodian, cancelled his appointment to review proposals for placing a back-up air conditioner in the communication room. Not all proposals have been received yet.

 

Marv Pesek, General Assistance Administrator, did not have any general assistance cases or applications for discussion.

 

Gregg Goebel, Emergency Management Director, came before the Board to review specifications for the purchase of pagers, hardware, software and all other equipment needed to update and strengthen the County’s communications systems for emergency services. The project will entail the implementation of two new repeater sites, one on the water tower in Syracuse and one on the water tower in Nebraska City. He said he is ready to submit Requests For Proposals (RFP). Estimated cost for the project is $215,600.00. The majority of the expenses will be paid from collections received through 911 surcharges. Commissioner Haverty made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Thummel to grant Mr. Goebel permission to proceed with securing RFPs for the purchase of emergency communication equipment as specified above. Voting -- Commissioners Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye. Motion carried.

 

Dave Schmitz, Zoning Administrator, conducted public hearings for several subdivision plats.

1) Prairie Winds Subdivision located in the SE ¼ of the SW ¼ S31-T9-R9 as requested by owner Eldon Schroder. Schmitz said the existing house and five acres is being sold to help pay for his nursing care. The subdivision was unanimously approved by Planning Commission. Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to authorize Chairman Schroder to sign the plat map for Prairie Winds Subdivision. Voting – Commissioner Thummel, aye; Commissioner Haverty, aye; Commissioner Schroder abstained due to a conflict of interest. Motion carried.

 

2) H&H Acres Subdivision located in the SE ¼ of the NE ¼ S30-T9-R11 as requested by owners Robert and Beverly Morris, Dennis and Deanne McGraw, Ronald and Karen Reimer. Schmitz said there is good access to rural water lines and the owners are installing a new septic system before selling the property. The subdivision was approved by the Planning Commission. Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Schroder to authorize Chairman Schroder to sign the plat map for H&H Acres Subdivision. Voting – Commissioners Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye. Motion carried.

 

3) Heine Subdivision located in the NE ¼ of the NW ¼ S20-T9-R12 as requested by owners James and Lori Heine. The Planning Commission recommended extending the lot 50 feet past the shelter belt to allow more room for laterals and to increase the acreage to a minimum of 3 acres. The parcel includes a house, grain bin and Quonset shed. Schmitz redrew the plat to increase the lot size since the Planning Commission meeting; therefore, the revised plat has not been signed by the Chairman of the Planning Commission or the landowners. Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to authorize Chairman Schroder to sign the plat map after Schmitz obtains the signatures of the landowners and the Chairman of the Planning Commission. Voting – Commissioners Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye. Motion carried.

 

4) Preliminary Plat for Davis Creek Subdivision located in the SE ¼ S11-T8-R11 as requested by Steve and Joyce Bunger. Present for the hearing were Bryan Lang and Mark Palmer, representing Olsson & Associates and Bill Davis and daughter, Joyce Bunger, landowners. Mr. Palmer said he has been working with the Planning Commission and Zoning Administrator in trying to comply with the County’s zoning regulations. They have drilled one permanent well and several other test holes to make sure there is ample water available. They are still working with the rural water service as well and probably will utilize both sources of water for the lots. Water drainage has been another major issue. There are ditches, creeks and waterways that are esthetically appealing, but hinder access to some lot areas. No homes will be built in areas that are in a 100 year Flood Plain. The diameter of the cul-de-sacs has been increased to accommodate fire/rescue vehicles.  Palmer said parcels on the east side will be developed first; the second phase will include lots in the southern section. There are no plans to develop the northwest lots in near future. Access to the subdivision will be built off of County Road 34 with no plans to have the road paved. Internal roads will be built 30 feet wide and graveled. In the disposition, they will guarantee water availability before the lot is sold, whether it is supplied by rural water or a drilled well. The sewage system or lagoon must be at least 100 feet from the water line or well. There being no objections, Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to approve the Preliminary Plat for Davis Creek Subdivision. Voting -- Commissioners Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye. Motion carried.

 

5) Hamilton Place Subdivision located in the NE ¼ of the SW ¼ S4-T9-R9 as requested by Jerry and Teresa Swartz. Neighbors attending the public hearing at the Planning Commission meeting last week were concerned with the width of Arbor Road. The Planning Commission approved the Preliminary Plat contingent upon the completion of road work to widen the road and add drainage culverts. The developer also reduced the number of lots from 7 to 5 due to sewer problems. Commissioner Schroder made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to table the matter until all road work is complete and inspected by the Zoning Administrator. Voting – Commissioners Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye. Motion carried.

 

On September 25, 2007, the County Board approved four amendments to the Otoe County Zoning Regulations. County Attorney, Dave Partsch, prepared a resolution to adopt the amendments as presented on that day. Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to sign and adopt Resolution 2007-37 to amend sections of Article 5 and Article 8 of the Otoe County Zoning Regulations as they were presented and approved at the September 25, 2007, Commissioners meeting. Voting – Commissioners Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye. Motion carried.

 

Glen Steffensmeier, County Highway Superintendent, and Road and Bridge Foremen Wally Pohlman, Rich Kuenning and Lynn Denniston came before the Board to discuss road and bridge matters.

 

Steffensmeier noted that he will be starting bridge inspections soon. There are 154 bridges to inspect this year. Foreman Denniston will assist him.

 

Oden Enterprises has poured the last cement slab that will be used to construct a new bridge west of Syracuse. They said they will be ready to deliver the slabs when the Bridge Crew is ready to construct the bridge. Steffensmeier had some concerns that the crew may not have time to complete the new bridge if the weather turns bad and questioned whether the crew should take out the old bridge now or wait until spring. He said he just received the Corp Permit yesterday, which is one of the reasons the project has been held up. Denniston said he already is working on two projects that need to be finished before winter, expecting another 2 to 3 weeks to complete them. That means the crew won’t be able to start this project until the middle of November. He estimated it would take two days to remove the old bridge and 3 to 4 weeks to construct the new one. Steffensmeier suggested that if Oden is willing to store the slabs, maybe they should wait to start the project in March. The Board told Steffensmeier to use his judgment whether to start the project this fall or not.

 

Steffensmeier said he has been unable to find a contractor with a crane available to set a tube on J Road between Roads 14 and 16. He asked if the Board would consider buying a used crane with an extendable boom.  Midwest Service & Sales has a late 70’s model that has been kept in a shed and is asking $12,000 for it. He said most contractors charge $175 per hour to bring in a crane to which costs $800 to $900 per job. Board members directed Steffensmeier to try out the crane on a job site to test its performance and see if he likes it.

 

Steffensmeier reported there is a large sink hole on Q Road, about ½ mile east of Hwy 75. He will need to get a contractor to fix it.

 

Steffensmeier said he will be turning in three projects for Soft Match credit which should help offset the cost for the next federal aid bridge project.

 

This week he received over $150,000 from FEMA for flood relief and expects to receive another $36,000 later.

 

According to a contract with L.J. Webb Contractor Inc, the Palmyra SE Bridge project is supposed to be completed in about 37 working days. Steffensmeier said that is not humanly possible since there is so much work to be done yet. The contract stated the project would take 80 working days or it will go into penalty. They are not being charged for Saturdays, Sundays, holidays or rain days. According to the inspection engineer, workers have been quitting early and not getting much work done in a day’s time. The Board agreed a letter should be sent to the company owner to warn him that he will be penalized if the work is not complete by the deadline. Steffensmeier said he doesn’t like to make a contractor pay a penalty, but the County needs to collect enough to offset additional costs of the project caused by their delays.

 

Dave Partsch, County Attorney, explained that the monthly claim in the amount of $1,366.00 payable to Steve Mercure is for the legal services that he provides as a special prosecutor when conflicting cases occur in the county attorney’s office. He said the current contract has expired; however, he has continued to use the services of Mr. Mercure. Partsh said he feels the monthly fee is minimal and probably is equivalent to the cost of one case per month. However, he will put together some statistics on how many cases Mercure handles and how much time he spends on them each month.  The question is - should we renew the contract and pay a set monthly fee or pay on a case by case basis? In the meantime, he recommended that the claim be paid this month. Commissioner Haverty made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Thummel to pay claim #2422 to Steve Mercure in the amount of $1,366. Voting -- Commissioners Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye. Motion carried.

 

Jim Johnston, Director of Nebraska City Tourism and Commerce Inc, Heather Bakula, President and Mark Easter, Vice President appeared before the Board to present an official Forensic Accounting Report prepared by the firm of BKD Inc in Omaha. The report includes a thorough investigation of all financial transactions, operations and procedures performed January of 2005 through the current year. They found no serious problems, but recommended having invoices attached to their claims. Last Monday, the State Patrol made an arrest of a former employee who is being charged with theft for taking money from fundraising events. Hopefully all problems have been resolved. They have new cash handling procedures in place so that this won’t happen again.

 

Carol Bruggeman, Village Clerk of Dunbar, came before the Board to request that Otoe County administer the Village’s zoning and building inspection services. About 10 years ago, there was an agreement between the County and the Village whereby the County provided these services, but the Village Board terminated the contract in 2001. Now, the Village Board would like to reinstate the agreement. She said she spoke with Dave Schmitz, the County Zoning Administrator and Alan Viox who conducts building inspections for the County and they both were willing to take over these duties. Commissioner Schroder advised Ms. Bruggeman that she should take the agreement back to the Village Board for them to take official action to sign it; then bring it back for the Commissioners to sign.

 

Discussion to create a policy to prorate the probationary period for eligibility for insurance benefits when an employee moves from a part-time to a full-time position was tabled to the next meeting.

 

Andrea Walters, County Assessor, presented the following tax list corrections: Wally’s % Paul Wallman – deduct $179.28 - double taxed due to the filing of duplicate personal property returns. David & Susan LeGrand – deduct $654.32 for tax years 2005 and 2006 – corrected square footage error on property card.  Commissioner Haverty made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Thummel to approve the tax list corrections as presented. Voting – Commissioners Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye. Motion carried.

 

Ms. Walters said Farm and Home Publishers have contacted her soliciting land transfer information that will be published in a plat book.  They offered to trade complimentary copies of plat books in return for the information. The Board agreed she should not charge the publisher for the information and accept the free copies of the plat books in lieu of payment.

 

Nick Shimmel, Jail Administrator, advised the Board that he would like to purchase four 5- drawer filing cabinets. He said a local vendor quoted him a sale price of $325 each, but he did not know how long the sale would last. The Board asked him to obtain quotes from some other vendors and to check with the state surplus center.

 

Miscellaneous correspondence was read and will be kept on file.

 

At 10:50 a.m. Commissioner Thummel made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to go into executive session to discuss personnel issues with the Highway Superintendent and County Attorney. Voting – Commissioners Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye. Motion carried.

 

At 11:20 a.m. Commissioner Haverty made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Thummel to go back into regular session.  Voting -- Commissioners Schroder, aye; Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye. Motion carried. No action was taken.

 

There being no further business to come before the Board at this time, and since all items on the agenda have been disposed of, Commissioner Haverty made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Thummel to declare this meeting adjourned, until the next one, which will be on November 13, 2007. Voting – Commissioners Thummel, aye; Haverty, aye; Schroder, aye. Motion carried.

 

I, Janene Bennett, County Clerk for Otoe County, do hereby certify that the above minutes were taken by me, and are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, and I therefore set my hand and affix my seal this 23rd day of October 2007.

 

Janene Bennett

Otoe County Clerk