Lancaster County
Board of Commissioners
Board of Commissioners
lancaster.ne.gov
STAFF MEETING AGENDA
Lancaster County Board of Commissioners
New County-City Building
Mayor's Conference Room - 2nd Floor
Thursday, February 5, 1998
8:00 a.m.
AGENDA ITEM
1 APPROVAL OF STAFF MEETING MINUTES OF JANUARY 22, 1998
2 ADDITIONS TO AGENDA
3 8:00am SPECIAL PERMIT NO. 154 & FINAL PLAT NO. 97040,
BRANCHED OAK LAKESIDE ACRES
Mike DeKalb, Planning Department
4 8:15am HAVELOCK RUN (USE OF 84TH STREET) -
Larry Worth, Transit Manager
5 8:30am LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant
6 9:00am TESSERACT UPDATE
Kandra Hahn, County Clerk; Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal
Officer; Doug Thomas, Information Services Director
7 9:30am PENDING LITIGATION; POSTING OF 55 MPH SPEED
LIMIT ON COUNTY ROADS; & SPECIAL TRIP PERMITS
Don Thomas, County Engineer; Diane Staab, Deputy County
Attorney; Virgil Dearmont, County Engineering Department
8 10:15am AMENDMENT OF PERSONNEL RULES, LEAVE TO ACCEPT
FEDERAL APPOINTMENT - Ron Todd, Personnel Director;
Mike Thurber, Corrections Director; Diane Staab, Deputy
County Attorney
9 10:30am BUDGET CALENDAR
Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer
10 10:45am PURCHASE OF GLOBAL ELECTION EQUIPMENT
Patty Hansen, Election Commissioner
11 ACTION ITEMS
12 CONSENT ITEMS
a. Leave Request from Mike Thurber for Monday, March 2,
through Tuesday, March 3, 1998 to attend Jail Management
Workshop in Kearney
b. Approval of Computer Requests Considered at Mid-Year
Budget Retreat (See Attachment)
13 ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER REPORT
a. Letter from Michael Carpenter re: Use of Lodging Tax for
Capital Improvements
b. Comprehensive Plan Annual Review
c. February Management Team Meeting
14 PENDING
15 DISCUSSION OF BOARD MEMBER MEETINGS
a. Master Plan Steering Committee - Hudkins
b. Attention Center Advisory Committee - Steinman
c. Community Mental Health Advisory Committee - Svoboda
d. Ag Land Valuation Board - Hudkins
e. Ecological Advisory Committee - Tussing
f. Economic Development Partnership - Steinman
16 SCHEDULE OF BOARD MEMBER MEETINGS
a. Public Building Commission -Tuesday, February 10,
1998, at 10:00 a.m., at the County- City Building Media
Center - Campbell, Hudkins
b. Technical Committee - Thursday, February 12, 1998,
at 1:00 p.m., at the County-City Building, Conference
Room #206 - Campbell, Steinman
17 INVITATIONS TO BOARD MEMBERS
a. United Way Annual Meeting - Tuesday, February 10, 1998,
at 11:30 a.m, at the Cornhusker Hotel, Grand Ballroom
b. Convention & Visitors Bureau's "Hospitality Industry
Retreat" - Tuesday, February 17, 1998, at 8:15 a.m., at
Quarry Oaks Golf Course, Interstate 80, Exit 426
c. LMEF Celebration "Opening Doors For Families" - Thursday,
February 19, 1998, at 6:00 p.m., at the Cornhusker
Convention Center, Lancaster Room
18 CORRESPONDENCE TO THE COUNTY BOARD
19 CORRESPONDENCE FROM THE COUNTY BOARD
20 AGENDA ITEMS FOR COUNTY BOARD MEETING OF FEBRUARY 10, 1998
21 EMERGENCY ITEMS AND OTHER BUSINESS
DRAFT COPY MINUTES Lancaster County Board Of Commissioners County-City Building Mayor's Conference Room, 2ND Floor Thursday, February 5, 1998 8:00 a.m. Commissioners Present: Kathy Campbell, Vice-Chair Darlene Tussing Steve Svoboda Commissioners Absent: Linda Steinman, Chair Larry Hudkins Others Present: Kerry Eagan, Chief Administrative Officer Ann Taylor, County Clerk's Office AGENDA ITEM 1 APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS MEETING OF JANUARY 22, 1998 MOTION: Tussing moved and Svoboda seconded approval. On call Tussing, Svoboda and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. 2 ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA No additions to the agenda were noted. 3 SPECIAL PERMIT NO. 154 & FINAL PLAT NO. 97040, BRANCHED OAK LAKESIDE ACRES - Mike DeKalb, Planning Department, Larry Worrell, County Surveyor Mike DeKalb, Planning Department, briefly reviewed, Special Permit No. 154 & Final Plat No. 97040, Branched Oak Lakeside Acres, a request for a Community Unit Plan consisting of 11 acreage lots with private mixed surface roads at a location west of Branched Oak Lake (Exhibit A). Larry Worrell, County Surveyor, noted concern that the property owners may elect to replat the area in the future and dedicate the subdivision's roads as public roads. He stated that the roads are not currently acceptable as public roads, and suggested that an agreement be reached with the developers before the final plat is approved requiring that fulfillment of the entire paving area be completed and the street island removed before the County will accept the streets as public streets. DeKalb suggested that the County add a condition to the Special Permit that requires the applicant to notify purchasers and landowners that the County will not accept mixed surface roads for public dedication at a later date. The Board agreed to add the condition to the Special Permit. 4 HAVELOCK RUN (USE OF 84TH STREET) - Larry Worth, Transit Manager Larry Worth, Transit Manager, briefly reported on the request from the Lincoln Track Club for a Special Permit to hold the Havelock Run. Worth noted that police officers will be posted at each end of 84th Street to alternate traffic, which is currently under construction between Havelock Avenue and Adams Street. The Board will take action on the Special Permit request at the Tuesday, February 10th Board of Commissioners meeting. 5 LEGISLATIVE UPDATE - Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant, briefly reviewed his legislative update and updated list of Senators' priority bills for the 1998 legislative session (Exhibit B). Kissel reported that amendments to LB 695, which changes provisions for the custody and maintenance of prisoners by counties, were adopted reducing the rate of payment to counties from $40 to $35 a day and applying the same reimbursement rate to individuals convicted of a felony, but sentenced to probation. He estimated Lancaster County's share at $1 million dollars. Kissel reported that he, in addition to Steinman, Campbell, Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer, met with State Senator Raikes, Michelle Waite, Legislative Aide, Bill Lock, Research Analyst, and George Kilpatrick, Revenue Committee Legal Counsel to discuss LB 1136, which creates the County Property Tax Relief Fund. Campbell noted that the formula is currently based on highway allocation and that Lancaster County would not receive any funds. She noted that Senator Raikes had suggested inserting another factor, such as the number of households below the poverty level, in the formula to equalize the distribution of funds to counties. Larry Worrell, County Surveyor, noted that the formula for distribution is based on the property valuation of the county. The number of road miles maintained by the county is also figured into the formula. In response to a suggestion from Kissel, Eagan agreed to draft and fax Kissel a letter from the Board for presentation to the Revenue Committee noting the discussion with Senator Raikes and requesting that a human service factor be added to the distribution formula in LB 1136. Kissel reported that Senator Wickersham intends to meet with other senators on the Appropriations Committee to discuss the total package of aid to counties. Tussing noted that the Nebraska Association of County Officials is on record as opposing LB 1066, which prohibits mental health regions from being direct service providers. Eagan reported that Mike Thew, Chief Deputy County Attorney, has concerns regarding the language of LB 982, which changes the membership and review standards of the Tax Equalization & Review Commission (TERC). 6 TESSERACT UPDATE - Kandra Hahn, County Clerk; Tim Genuchi, Accounting Operations Manager for the County Clerk's Office; Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer; Doug Thomas, Information Services Director Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer, distributed copies of a letter from Ron Brooks, Information Services Systems Development Coordinator, noting concerns regarding use of a shared database for City and County payroll (Exhibit C) and estimated costs for the Lincoln/Lancaster County Tesseract Payroll System for the years 1998-2000 (Exhibit D). Kroeker noted that the City has requested an Interlocal agreement addressing cost issues, including payment of costs related to implementation of the 96 release. Tim Genuchi, Accounting Operations Manager for the County Clerk's Office, reported that the current plan is to run two databases on the Tesseract program. Campbell stated that it had been her impression that the County was at the point of implementing the new payroll system but has been informed by Kandra Hahn, County Clerk, that that is not the case. At Campbell's request, Genuchi provided a brief background of the County's participation to date in the Tesseract Payroll System. He noted that the County's implementation of the system has been delayed several times by Information Services to allow for other projects. Doug Thomas, Information Services Director, confirmed that other projects, such as implementation of the HMC System for the State of Nebraska, received priority status over the County's implementation of the Tesseract Payroll System. He stated that this was due in part to the fact that the County had a functioning payroll system. Thomas estimated that implementation of the 96 release will be completed by October 1, 1998 for the City, and March 1, 1999 for the County. He noted that two versions of the program can not run simultaneously, so implementation of the 94 release for the County is no longer an option. Kandra Hahn, County Clerk, stated that the County initially believed that piggybacking onto the City's Tesseract payroll system was the best solution for the County, however she suggested that reassessment is needed to determine whether that is actually the case. She noted that the County will not have the level of protection from supplier's problems, under the proposed relationship with the City, that a contract with an outside vendor would provide. In response to a question from Campbell, Hahn reported that she and Genuchi will continue to research alternative payroll systems, but recommended that the County continue discussions with the City. Eagan expressed concern that the Board was not informed of, or allowed to participate in, the decision by Information Services to delay implementation of the County's payroll system project in favor of other projects. Thomas responded that Information Services provides a brief report on the status of projects each month at the Information Services Policy Committee (ISPC) but agreed that expanded discussion of projects was needed. Kroeker reported that the County has already invested $90,000 towards development and original license costs for the Tesseract system, noting that delays have caused the County's costs for implementation to escalate. Kroeker reviewed a proposal for allocation of future costs related to the Tesseract Payroll System (Exhibit E), noting the following categories: Processing Costs Direct Costs Shared Costs Kroeker estimated the difference between the 50/50 split of costs, proposed by the City, and costs paid on a ratio of City/County Payroll at $9,256. He stated that this amount was not such that he would recommend that the County cease moving forward with implementation of the project. Thomas suggested that a memorandum of understanding between the City and County addressing issues such as future licensing and annual maintenance costs be drafted. Hahn recommended that performance based standards be included. The Board requested Doug Thomas, Information Services Director, to draft a memorandum of understanding between the City and County including performance standards, as well as distribution of costs. The Board also requested that Steinman, Campbell, Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer, Kandra Hahn, County Clerk, Tim Genuchi, Accounting Operations Manager for the County Clerk's Office, and Doug Thomas, Information Services Director, meet at 10 a.m. on Friday, February 20th, to review the memorandum of understanding draft, the City's proposal and the proposed allocation figures with a report back to the Board on Thursday, February 26th. Kroeker inquired whether the Board wanted to approve sending a member of the Information Services staff to training on the Tesseract system, at an expense of $5,000. Thomas stated that further delay of implementation could occur if the Board elects to proceed with the Tesseract system and staff has not received training. Board consensus to approve the training expenditure. 7 PENDING LITIGATION - Don Thomas, County Engineer; Diane Staab, Deputy County Attorney, Doug Cyr, Deputy County Attorney MOTION: Tussing moved to enter Executive Session at 9:47 a.m. for the purpose of pending litigation. On call Tussing, Svoboda and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. MOTION: Tussing moved and Svoboda seconded to exit Executive Session at 10:14 a.m. On call Tussing, Svoboda and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. 8 POSTING OF 55 MPH SPEED LIMIT ON COUNTY ROADS; & SPECIAL TRIP PERMITS Don Thomas, County Engineer; Diane Staab, Deputy County Attorney, Doug Cyr, Deputy County Attorney Don Thomas, County Engineer, appeared to propose that the Board adopt a policy to post signs designating a speed change to 55 mph at locations where drivers move from State highways to hard surface County roads and where the speed limit of 55 mph resumes from a lesser speed zone. He noted that the State of Nebraska places speed limit and State highway designation signs every five to seven miles and drivers are frequently confused as to the proper speed limit. Thomas also reported that the speed limit for hard surface county roads is erroneously stated as 60 mph on Page 35 of the updated Nebraska Driver's Manual (Exhibit F). In response to a questions from Campbell, Thomas stated that 148thStreet is a county road, not a state highway and that speeds are not reduced near housing developments unless a specific justification exists. Campbell also inquired about traffic counts on 148th Streets. Thomas reported a traffic count of over 2,000 on the north portion or148th Street from O Street to Waverly. He stated that a considerable portion of this traffic is related to heavy trucks. The County Engineer Department plans to take an Origin and Destination survey of the traffic. If the traffic is not local in nature, it may be determined that the road should be turned over to the State Highway Department. Thomas also appeared to propose that the Board adopt a policy to require that a representative of any company moving a house within the County sign the application for the special permit and to assume liability for damages. He noted that the fee for the special permit will be $10 and that bonding costs will be detailed in the permit. The Board will take action on proposed resolutions establishing policy on posting of 55 mph speed limits on county roads and Special Trip Permits for moving houses within the County at the Tuesday, February 10th County Board of Commissioners meeting scheduled for 1:30 p.m. in the Commissioners Hearing Room. Thomas also reported that he has sent a letter to Bahr Vermeer & Haecker Architects regarding the malfunction of the heating and air conditioning system in the County Engineer's building at 444 Cherrycreek Road. He requested that Kerry Eagan, Chief Administrative Officer, also contact the architects regarding the problem. 9 AMENDMENT OF PERSONNEL RULES, LEAVE TO ACCEPT FEDERAL APPOINTMENT Ron Todd, Personnel Director; Mike Thurber, Corrections Director; Diane Staab, Deputy County Attorney Mike Thurber, Corrections Director, reported that Kent Griffith, Jail Administrator, has requested a two year leave of absence to accept a federal appointment to serve as an Intergovernmental Personnel Action (IPA) consultant to the United States Department of Justice. He stated that the Personnel Rules would need to be changed for the Board to consider Griffith's request. Thurber noted that the federal government will reimburse the County in full for Griffith's salary. Since the salary for this appointment is greater than Griffith's current salary, he will also receive a check from the federal government for the difference. Thurber also noted that issues related to health insurance coverage and retirement contributions have been resolved. Ron Todd, Personnel Director, noted that if the Personnel Rules are changed, the change would be applicable to all County employees. Campbell asked if the County could loan an employee to another governmental agency. Todd stated that they could. Diane Staab, Deputy County Attorney, stated that since Griffith is a classified employee, his position must remain vacant. He will also be eligible for any benefits to which he would normally be entitled. She stated that other employees could raise concerns if the leave issue is not clearly addressed in the Personnel Rules. Thurber stated that he may need to hire an assistant to replace Griffith during his absence. Brief discussion followed on whether the County can require Griffith to return to the County's employ at the end of his appointment. Thurber stated that there were no guarantees, although there would be some monetary loss to the individual under the federal contract. Doug Cyr, Deputy County Attorney, suggested that Griffith be requested to sign a separate contract agreeing to return and provide services to the County for a certain period of time. Thurber agreed to contact the federal government to determine whether a separate contractual agreement would be permissible. Campbell suggested that any changes to the Personnel Rules note that special leave is for appointment to another governmental entity only. Todd suggested that an Interlocal Agreement with the federal government might make a change to the Personnel Rules unnecessary. Board concurrence to allow Griffith to pursue the federal appointment and to have Diane Staab, Deputy County Attorney, and Ron Todd, Personnel Director, work out whether a change in Personnel Rules or an Interlocal Agreement with the federal government would be the appropriate method of granting special leave, with a report back to the Board at the Tuesday, February 10th Board of Commissioners meeting scheduled for 8 a.m. 10 BUDGET CALENDAR - Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer, briefly reviewed the budget calendar (Commissioners' Information Packet). He reported that the County Assessor will be mailing out 60,000 notices of property valuation change on June 1st and noted that the property valuation process must be completed by July 25th. Kroeker suggested that Property Valuation Protest Referee hearings be scheduled the last part of June. MOTION: Tussing moved and Svoboda seconded to proceed with the Budget Calendar as outlined by Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer. On call Tussing, Svoboda and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. The Board requested Kroeker to draft a letter to County agencies for inclusion in the budget packets. 11 PURCHASE OF GLOBAL ELECTION EQUIPMENT Patty Hansen, Election Commissioner Patty Hansen, Election Commissioner, reported that a request to purchase election equipment from I-Mark was included in her budget, but that owner- ship of I-Mark recently transferred to Global Election Systems. The initial request has been slightly modified to include improvements which include two ballot scanners, which have been approved by the Independent Testing Authority, two PC's that will generate paper absentee ballots and one PC to program the cards for voting stations, for an increased cost of $4,000. Hansen reported that she has requested Diane Staab, Deputy County Attorney, and Kathy Smith, Assistant Purchasing Agent, to review the Purchase Agreement and Doug Thomas, Information Services Director, to review the software license agreement. Hansen also reported that Kelley Guenzel, Deputy Election Commissioner, has resigned, effective February 28th, to seek elective office. She will report the name of Guenzel's replacement to the Board on February 10th. The new deputy will begin employment three days prior to Guenzel's last day, to allow for training, which will have a slight impact on the Election Commissioner's budget. 12 CONSENT ITEMS a. Leave Request from Mike Thurber, Corrections Director, for Monday, March 2 through Tuesday, March 3, 1998 to attend a Jail Management Workshop in Kearney MOTION: Tussing moved and Svoboda seconded approval of the leave request. On call Tussing, Svoboda and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. b. Approval of Computer Requests Considered at Mid-Year Budget Retreat Kroeker briefly reviewed the computer requests tentatively approved at the Commissioners Mid Year Budget Retreat (Commissioners' Information Packet), noting that three Netscape licenses had been deducted from the County Clerk's request. All of the purchases, with the exception of the Geographic Information System (GIS) server upgrade, are from the Microcomputer Fund Budget. Eagan also reported that the Register of Deeds' request for three imaging workstations are for employee use, not the public, as previously reported. Board consensus to hold the Register of Deeds' computer request for further consideration by the full Board. MOTION: Tussing moved and Svoboda seconded to approve the list of computer requests, except the Register of Deeds. On call Svoboda, Tussing and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. 13 ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER REPORT a. Letter from Michael Carpenter, Lincoln Convention & Visitors Bureau Director, Regarding Use of Lodging Tax for Capital Improvements MOTION: Tussing moved and Svoboda seconded to send a letter to the Sarpy County Board stating that, based on recommendations from the Visitors Promotion Advisory Committee and Lincoln Lodging Association, the Board has elected not to support Sarpy County's petition of the Legislature to allow lodging tax dollars to be used for capital improvements. On call Svoboda, Tussing and Campbell voted aye. Motion carried. b. Comprehensive Plan Annual Review The Board directed Eagan to notify the City Council that the Board would prefer to schedule a hearing on the Comprehensive Plan Annual Review before the Commons on February 23rd or 24th, from 4 to 6 p.m. An alternative date of March 3rd from 4 to 6 p.m. was also suggested. c. February Management Team Meeting Board consensus to schedule the February Management Team meeting for February 19th, from 8 to 9 a.m. at a location to be announced. 14 DISCUSSION OF BOARD MEMBER MEETINGS a. Master Plan Steering Committee - Hudkins No report was given. b. Attention Center Advisory Committee - Steinman No report was given. c. Community Mental Health Advisory Committee - Svoboda Svoboda reported that reports of individuals experiencing difficulty in accessing the Crisis Center and Regional Center, after Mental Health Board commitment, were discussed. He noted that a sub-committee will be meeting with Senator Wesely, Chairman of the Legislature's Health & Human Services Committee, to discuss the situation. d. Agricultural & Horticultural Land Valuation Board - Hudkins No report was given. e. Ecological Advisory Committee - Tussing Tussing reported that the Planning Department's suggestion of a hiring a mediator to help determine the scope of the Wilderness Park Ecological Study was discussed, with a decision to proceed with research of the ecological issues. f. Economic Development Partnership - Steinman No report was given. g. Region V Governing Board - Tussing Tussing reported that the quarterly meetings with the State Department of Health & Human Services have helped resolve a number of concerns. Tussing also reported that, due to the increasing number of clients, the Lincoln Development Disabilities Program may be expanded. h. Nebraska Association of County Officials (NACO) Board- Tussing Tussing reported that proposed legislation was discussed, with a consensus to continue monitoring LB 989, which changes budget limits for political subdivisions and school districts. i. Lancaster Manor - Tussing Tussing reported that a report was given by the two surveyors who conducted the Health Report for Lancaster Manor. 15 SCHEDULE OF BOARD MEMBER MEETINGS a. Public Building Commission - Tuesday, February 10, 1998, at 10 a.m., in the County-City Building Media Center - Campbell, Hudkins b. Technical Committee - Thursday, February 12, 1998, at 1 p.m., in the County-City Building, Conference Room #206 - Campbell, Steinman 16 INVITATIONS TO BOARD MEMBERS a. United Way Annual Meeting - Tuesday, February 10, 1998, at 11:30 a.m., at the Cornhusker Hotel, Grand Ballroom b. Convention & Visitors Bureau's "Hospitality Industry Retreat" Tuesday, February 17, 1998, at 8:15 a.m., at Quarry Oaks Golf Course, Interstate 80, Exit 426 c. Lincoln Medical Education Foundation Celebration "Opening Doors for Families" - Thursday, February 19, 1998, at 6 p.m., at the Cornhusker Convention Center, Lancaster Room 17 CORRESPONDENCE TO THE COUNTY BOARD 18 CORRESPONDENCE FROM THE COUNTY BOARD 19 AGENDA ITEMS FOR THE COUNTY BOARD MEETING OF FEBRUARY 10, 1998 20 EMERGENCY ITEMS AND OTHER BUSINESS 21 ADJOURNMENT By direction of the Vice-Chair, the meeting was adjourned. ______________________ Kandra Hahn Lancaster County Clerk