REGULAR: MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY: BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER32024  PAGE471  The] JasperCounty Commissioners: met this date at 830AMCS-Tat9105. Sparling, Rensselaer, Indiana with the following members present: Rein Bontreger, James Walstra and Jeffrey DeYoung. Also present were. Deputy Auditor, Treasure Gilbert, Deputy Auditor, Diana Boersma and Ericl Beaver, the. Attorney that represents the Commissioners. Those present stood and recited thel Pledge of Allegiancel led byl Mr. Bontreger. There was a briefn moment ofs silence following the MINUTES: Mr. Walstra motioned to approve the minutes from August 5,2024, as presented, Mr. CLAIMS: Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve the claims, as presented, Mr. Walstra seconded and PAYROLL CLAIMS: Mr. Walstra motioned to approve the payroll claims with checks dated August 15,2024 and August 30,2024, Mr. DeYoung seconded and the motion carried. SURVEYOR /E EXTENSION OFFICE SIGN: Mr. Bontreger said they had a project that was initiated with Commissioner Culp previously and has been a couple years int the making. He said Farm Bureau is going to upgrade theirs signage out by the Surveyor/Extension Office, which they made provisions to allow the. Jasper County Extension/Surveyor sign location ini their design. He said the sign willl be internally lit and the cost will be $9,485.97. He said this money willl be sent back tol Farm Bureau. Mr. Bontreger asked ift there was ai motion to approve this and showed the picture oft the project tol Mr. Walstra. Mr. DeYoung motioned toj proceed, Mr. Bontreger said that iffors some reason one oft the departments relocated, those panels could be re-lettered, Mr. Walstra ANDY BOERSMA/ /FEE SCHEDULE: Mr. Bontreger said that Mr. Boersma was there to talk abouta a fee schedule andt they are getting closer toi itl but, it willj probably have to wait two weeks. Mr. Boersma said he didn't! have anything new but, he wanted to try to geti iti ironed out. He said by the end of ther month $3,000.00 would be due, out of! his budget that was approved, to pay the peoplei itr needs to go to. Mr. Bontreger asked Attorney Beaveri ifhet thought] he couldl havei it ready to go in two weeks. Attorney Beaver said yes and he anticipated that there would probably be a bonus coming ont the claims. Mr. Bontreger apologized for the delay and thanked Mr. Boersma for his patience. Mr. Boersma said! hel has been patient for 25 years waiting on ai new building. Mr. Bontreger asked Attorey Beaveri if"RFPS" have been put out. Attorney Beaver said they are looking att two weeks tol have an RFP tot the Commissioners. Mr. Bontreger said that Councilman, Mr.] Moore, wouldl liket tol havea a committee to oversee any capital projects they are looking at. Mr. Moore saidi maybe it was time tol have a committee to oversee some of this stuffa and help decide whot they're goingt tol hire fore engineering and stuff. Mr. Bontreger said thisi isa discussion tol have anda a goodi idea to consider. Mr. Boersma said hel likes the idea. Hes said" Tecton put him in contact with a company called they' ve worked with called DLZ. He said he talked with them and in the process, the Sheriff stepped up ands said) hel has Public Safety money they can use but, he wants to adds something fort the them to uset to examine cars. He saidt they should include the Sheriffor one Mr. Boersma said the architectural fees and design fees from this company would be around $313,000.00. He said this is 7% of the hard cost and when they were. looking at the papers they gave them, they were looking at 3.5-4.2 million and they are looking around 4.5 if the Sheriff wants to add! his stuffi in there. He saidt thel building would bei more universally used1 by the Coroner and Sheriff. He said they could also use thel bay they want for the Health! Department toj park their trailer ini fori immunizations. Mr. Bontreger said the goali ist to consideri ital lawe enforcement: facility andt the special jail rate theyl kept active, funds purchasing or upkeepingl law enforcement: facilities  Pledge.  DeYoungs seconded andt the motion carried.  ther motion carried.  supported and the motion carried.  ofhis representatives ont the committee.  so, they maybe draw up ont that rate they have inj play.    REGULAR. MEETING OF THE.J JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER: 3,2024  PAGE4 472  TORI NUEST/A ANIMAL CONTROL/S SHED REPLACEMENT / SIGN REPLACEMENTI CAMERA SYSTEM/2024: STATS: Ms. Nuest joined via Zoom. She went over some of Animal  Control's stats as of August 15th. Calls Per Service Bites Intakes After Hours Call-Outs Adoptions Reclaims Rescues Euthanized  2023 151 51 251 24  2024 YTD 185 55 205 27 85 80 13 13 14  MicrochppedRetumed to owner  Average time int the shelter Cats-22 days Dogs-10 days  Ms. Nuest said as you can see, they have a substantial amount of calls for service, bite cases and intakes that are weighing in ont them. She said she also wanted to talk about their camera system. Shes said they used to use ADT but, theyf fell of at some] point ands she isi interested inl looking back into ADTt tos service the cameras that are already there andt taking down the. Arlo cameras. She said since they've not had the cameras rolling, they've had four animals dumped overnight with no leads. She said unfortunately, they had to euthanize two of them because, they were. left suffering att thel back door. She said they needt tol have some sort ofs security system in the office and outside thel building SO, she would liket to go through ADT. Mr. Bontreger said! hei isn'topposed tot the new cameras, as long as it goes through the proper channels of decision making; from the Animal Control Board recommending itt to the Commissioners. He said ift the new cameras will work and their boardi recommends itt then, she can bring them the recommendation and! he'ss sure they would approvei it.) He: said ifthe cameras aren't going to work then, she can bring them a cost, ifthe board recommends ADT, and they can consider that. He said the main thing is to make sure she runs it Mr. Bontreger asked] Ms. Nuesti if shel knew why the trend was going up this year, referring tol her stats. Ms. Nuest said that she wasn't 100% sure but, Starke County just got their animal control back, Pulaski doesn'thave animal control and! Newton County is veering towards not doing animal control. She said they are findingt that al lot oft the calls arej just on the county line. Mr. Bontreger asked what their needs were for the shed they are requesting. Ms. Nuest said thisi is inr regards to their green shed and they need to geti it fixed up. She said the mice are under control but, not the raccoons: and opossums. She saidt there was ai fox that tore up the back oft thes shed and now theyl have mold. She saidt they were approached byt the Cub Scouts and] Eagle Scouts andt they wanted to seei ift there was any opportunity for an eco-project that they might be able tol help raise funds for or reach out tol local businesses or local contractors tos seei ift they might! be able to donate time andl labor to alleviate some oft the cost. She said her opinioni is this shedi isa al littlet too far gone. Shes said they would liket to uset this as an adoption shed. Shes saidt they' 've had fart too1 many animals escape out of the small adoption area in the front and with animals being left there overnight, they've destroyed the fencing. She said this is another reason why they need the camera system. Mr. Bontreger asked what size the shed is. Ms. Nuest said she wasn't sure, Mr. Moore said its around 10x25. Ms. Nuest said she doesn't think they need something that big but, they will need electric rant toi it.) Mr. Bontreger said they will taket this under advisement and picki it back up at the Ms. Nuest also wanted to talk about their sign and asked if there were any plans to replace it. She said they still have people either going tol EMS or Community Corrections even though their sign does say "entrance in1 the back" or "building in the back". Mr. Bontreger said they have tentative plans but, nothing necessarily toj put out there right now. He said they will talk about this in two  through her board.  next meeting.    REGULARI MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER: 3,2024  PAGE473  TORI NUEST/ ANIMAL CONTROL CONTINUED: weeks as well. He said there isas sign out therel but, it'ss smaller than the original one.. Hes said they probably need something al littlel bit bigger but, they don't want tol block visibility coming out of that drive. Mr. DeYoung askedi ift they could puta as sign back behind EMS: and Community Corrections that maybe says "keep driving forward". CARMEN FORTNEY/ /F REQUEST: FOR NEW SHED: Ms. Fortney said they are losing some storage in the area they are sharing with the Surveyor's Office. She said shel has an abundance of blocks inl her officet thata are taking upa al lot ofs space ands she doesn'treally do al lot ofblock parties. Shes said they belong tot the County because, they were bought with a grant SO, she technically can't get rid of them. She provided the Commissioners with a few quotes for a new shed. There was a 10x6 shed for about $380.00: and she thought thati is the smallest they should go. Mr. Urbano said they' vel been meaning toj puts some shelving up tol help. Mr. Bontreger said his concern with putting a shed out there is with the wind. Mr. Urbano said there's a shed out there for the garden sO, they could probably use that. Mr. Bontreger said it would be a good idea to follow through with the EMS BUILDING WARRANTIES: Attorney Beaver said that when the EMS building was finished, one ofthei material providers was ChiefBuildings. Hes said Chiefprovided: four warranties oft ther materials that were used to construct thel building and they need tol be accepted by the owner, whichi ist the Commissioners. He said he has reviewed them andt they are pretty standard. He said he would propose an oral resolution to approve the warranties and authorize Mr. Bontreger to sign and e-sign the warranties. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve Mr. Bontreger signing off on the BRENDA DOLAN / WORKONE: Ms. Dolan, with WorkOne, said that that WorkOne and JobWorks offer a fewj programs tol businesses and the community. She said she was theret to talk about their work experience program. She said she works with 16-24-year old's and adults as well. She said she contacted the Animal Shelter for a young lady who is a veterinarian assistant. She said with the work experience program, they wouldg goi into the business and be paid by WorkOne. She said this is to help with their soft skills such as, showing up to work on time, dressing appropriately, doing what your told and staying off your phone. She said shei is presenting this to Mr. Bontreger asked ifthis was specifically for Animal Control. Ms. Dolan said it could be for any business or organization. Mr. Bontreger asked what they would require oft the Commissioners and what shei isl looking for this morning. Ms. Dolan said she was tolds she needed toj present itt to them. She said what they would doi is present ai resume andi ifthey] like them, they would work up a contract or agreement statingt the start date, end date and! how manyl hours and weeks they would work. She said she would check in with them every 30,60,90 days andi it's usually for a month to three months. Shes saidi ife everything goes great then, they havea a chance tol hire themi ifthey would like. Shes saidt they could endi itata any time ands sO couldt the client.] Mr. DeYoung askedifWorkOne isp payingt the employee. Ms. Dolan said yes, they take ont their pay, work comp andi insurance. Mr. DeYoung askedi ift this ist through the State. Ms. Dolan said yes, they are. Federally funded. Mr. Bontreger wantedi toj play out al hypothetical situation. He askedi ift they got somebody to work at Animal Control and they got bit, how it would be handled and ift there is extral liability for the county. Ms. Dolan said WorkOne would take on all responsibility. Attorney Beaver said if workman' S comp is being covered by WorkOne then, they could start the process with WorkOne and the department head finding a candidate then, have their agreement go to the Commissioners and approve the contract. Ms. Dolan provided. Attorney Beaver with a sample agreement. Mr. Bontreger asked if, pending legal review, the Commissioners would be open to allowing WorkOne to work with the department heads or HR to potentially take advantage of this opportunity. Mr. DeYoung said yes and with limited: skilled labor, he would be interested in at  shelving and consider putting some oft the stuffi in the gardening shed.  EMSI building warranties, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion carried.  seei ifiti is something the Commissioners' would consider.    REGULARI MEETING OF' THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER3 3,2024  PAGE474  BRENDA DOLAN/WORKONE CONTINUED: least trying thej program tos seel howi it goes. He askedi ifthe employee could endi it at any time; Ms. Dolan said yes, thee employee or employer. Mr. DeYoung asked ift the people come to WorkOne. Ms. Dolan said yes and they do have to enroll. Mr. DeYoung made a motion, pending legal review to go ahead and try the WorkOne work experience program, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion carried. Mr. Bontreger said the department heads can take thei initiative to reach out to WorkOne and possibly for seasonal help. SHARON COLEE/ /ROOF IPAK/REQUESTIOINSTALLEIECIRICIDA FORNEWSIGN ATCOMMUNITY SERVICES/SNOW SHOVELING: Ms. Colee provided the Commissioners with aj packet. She said they had al bill from Hamstra for repairing a roof leak at the Rensselaer center for $2,541.29. She said the building is getting older and they willl be celebrating 50 years Ms. Colee said they are excited about a digital sign project coming up that they got a grant for. Shes saidt they are goingt through Stewart Signs. She said the led sign at the DeMotte location has been a tremendous help and has increased awareness SO, they would like to do the same in Rensselaer. She saidt the cost oft the sign is $11,197.95 and installation is $5,200.00. She said this doesn'tcover thec cost toi install the electric. She asked ift the Commissioners could tell her who to call toi install the electric and cover the cost, which she guessed would be around $1,200.00. Mr. DeYoung was looking att the packet shel handed out andj pointed out that Stewart Signs doesn'tdo their own: installation. Ms. Colee said they subcontract that out to Apex. Mr. DeYoung expressed his concerns about who is liable for damage to the sign. Hej joked that since Mayor Phillips was present that maybe he will allow them to run an extension cord from their light pole. Ms. Colee asked ifs shei needed to contact someone or what direction they needed to go. Mr. Bontreger saidi if the City electric departments not ablet to complete the connection then, they would probably have Mr. Walstra motioned to approve the roof repair for $2,541.29, Mr. DeYoung seconded and the motion carried. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve providing the electrical for the digital message Ms. Colee said the County does the snow plowing fort the Fase Senior Center and the Rensselaer Senior Center parking lots. She said they have minimal snow removal needed in front of the door at thel Rensselaer Center but, thel Fase Center goes all the way around the building. She saidi int the past the staff has taken care ofit but, they are female employees that have aged and are nol longer able to do it. She said she wasn't sure who to contact for this because, they don't have the equipment, other than shovels, and the maintenance person is older as well. She said she talked to Mr. Boersma about who takes care oft the Sheriff's. Annex and] he said the Sheriff does. She said shel has tol be careful with liability because, there'sal lot of thes seniors that want to try tol help. She said the county currently plows the parking lots but, not the sidewalks Mr. Walstra suggested looking forb bids. Mr. DeYoungs suggested tabling this for two weeks while hel looksi intoi it. He said ift they went for bids then, thes snow removal company would probably want to do the parking lot EDP RENEWABLES: Mr. Bontreger said they originally had EDP on the agenda to discuss a road-use agreement but, they are goingt top pushi it back two weeks. Attorney Beavers said they have an agreement on the revision of thel RUA and they want to add new mileage. He said once they have this, they'll have the Highway, Surveyor and BF&S review it for additional tiles, culverts ands section corners. He said BF&S will also go on site to do some review this week tol look at the differences in the culvert inventory of eachs side. Mr. Bontreger said construction compliance has been working quite nicely. He said1 hei is glad theyl have iti inj place and its definitely the way to go  She said thel help with jobl leads, resumes andi interview skills.  Ms. Dolan said they are more than willing to give it their best shot.  next year and 30 oft those years werei in that building.  her talk tol Kevin Moore since he willl be redoing their parking lot lights.  sign, Mr. Walstra supported and the motion carried.  as well.  with any oft their larger projects going forward.    REGULAR. MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER: 3,2024 OTHER BUSINESS  PAGE475  GROWINGI PATCH LEARNING CENTER/ QUENTEN OVERBECK/CHYANNE HESSON: Growing Patch Learning Center Board President, Mr. Overbeck, said they are the only level four paths to quality childhood education center. licensed in Jasper County. He said theys started GPLC upon the closing of the) Families of JCYC, which was the only State licensed childcare center in Jasper County at the time. He said they opened with the belief that their children's peers deserve thes same. level of childcare and access to what their kids had experienced at the Families ofJCYC. He said they believe that the community as a whole would be better, both socially and economically ifthey hadt this sort ofs servicei int their town.] He said they operated independently for several years until 2019, at which point their director announced her intent to leave. He said Mr. Overbeck went over their financial state. He said iti is very complicated, financially, to be a childcare provider under the State accreditation because, they are not able to charge enough to our community members to cover their expenses. He said they lose approximately $4,000 a seat. He said they've been able to stay open through community support. He said previously, the Commissioners' had not shown muchi interest in supporting thist type of program. He: saidi he would like to thank them for changing that trend through County support. He said they have a strong passion for Remington and their community and hel believes services liket this are 100% necessary tol build the community economically and socially. He thanked the Commissioners and Council GPLC Director, Ms. Hesson, said she has been with them since 2018 where she started as a Lead Teacher then, worked her way up to the Assistant Director and she is now the Director as of December 2023. She said in that amount of time she has got them to be national accredited by NAEYC. She said the national accreditation means that they hold high quality for children. She saidt they do al high-quality curriculum, teaching them anda assessing their health. Shes said they also hold above 50% fort their staff qualifications. She said they are children's first learners from Oto 5andt they get them ready for kindergarten. She said theyl have five classrooms; six weeks to six years old. She said they currently have 64 seats but, they are full. She said they have nineteen students on their wait] list; eight of which are babies. She said they have twelve students on CCD vouchers and two on "on my way" vouchers, which come from State funding for low income families. She also said they have eighteen full-time staff members, ten of which use the teach Ms. Hesson said they also partner with Jacob's Ladder to screen students as they enter their building toi make sure they meet their milestones. She saidi ift they are not meeting milestones, they reach out tol First Steps and then, Cooperative School Services for. Jasper County tol help them with the next steps so that their students are getting the services they need. Mr. Bontreger asked how this affects the workforce in the Remington area and how the need affects local employers. Ms. Hesson said if they didn't have this center, the parents would have to travel much farther for childcare. Mr. Bontreger askedi if they've had consistent staffing. Ms. Hesson said they have had consistent staffing but before, they didl have al lot of turnover. She said raising thej pay has helped plus, they getac childcare discount. Mr. Bontreger asked! how: ith has been working with! Right Steps. Mr. Overbeck said it has been huge for them to train and implement directors, as well as grant writers. He said they bring al lot to their table that their board didn't have sO, it has been a good Mr. Bontreger said they are at capacity sO, he asked ift there would ever be, aside from getting a large grant, aj possibility to expand. Mr. Overbeck said Ms.] Hesson asks this a lot. He saida a lot of ther regulation is surrounding one staff member per child and al lot ofit comes down to restrooms. Hes said the facility was laid out as religiously based, which has different requirements. He saidi if they had the money, they would lovet to expand. Mr. Bontreger saidt they appreciate the work they are doing. Mr. Overbeck saidt they appreciate the support. Mr. DeYoung thanked them as well.  fortunately, they were: introduced tol Right Steps, who is their current operator.  for their support inj programs like this. Het then turned it over tol Ms. Hesson.  funding tor receive higher education.  relationship.    REGULAR, MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER: 3,2024  PAGE476  HEALTH DEPARTMENT BIDS: Mr. Kennell, with Tecton, said they should have received Tecton's recommendation letter and bid summary sheet from the bids they received on August 16t.Hes said they recommended all thel low! bidders and all three alternates. He said with approval, they would like tos start construction sometime mid-October to late-October. Mr. Bontreger said he was pleased, Mr. DeYoung said he was too. Mr. Kennell said the numbers were good. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve. Mr. Bontreger signing the recommendation letter from Tecton, on Ms. Louck saids she wanted to talkt tot them about cleaning out thel kitchen. She askedi lifthey wanted all of the stuff taken to the County auction, as she's already spoken to the Highway Department about getting it all moved out. She said they will come move it whenever she gets permission. She said there is a safe in the hallway and the Coroner was wanting that. Mr. Bontreger asked ift the stuff was worth more than scrapping it. Mr. DeYoung said they had looked into reusing some of the stuff but, he doesn't think its worth more than scrapping. Mr. Urbano said they could throw the stuff on a trailer and they could take it. Mr. Bontreger asked if they get it scrapped and they get a check, if they takei it tot the Auditor's Office. Attorney Beaver said yes because, they would need tol keep track of any capital assets that are on hand and have a record ofwhich items were disposed of. He said he assumes the money would go back into the General Fund. He said he would look to see if there is a statute about disposing of surplus property below a certain value. Mr. Bontreger said he would entertain a motion, pending legal review and al basic inventory list, to scrap the kitchen items. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve, Mr. Walstra supported and the motion carried. Ms. Louck asked ifs she couldj justl let the Coroner taket the safe. Mr. Bontreger said BRIAN MOORE: Councilman, Mr. Moore, asked if anyone else in the county could utilize the kitchen items before they scrapi it. Mr. DeYoung said they triedt to give it away andi it has been out therei for six months. Mr. Moore saidt theyj just spent al bunch ofmoney on Community Correction's kitchen. Mr. DeYoung said none oft this would work for them. Mr. Bontreger said they explored, in depth, the possibility of using it and he is more than welcome to take a look ati it. Mr. Moore said he just wanted to throw it out there. He also asked for clarification on the grant for the Community Service's sign. Mr. Bontreger said the grant would not cover the electrical hookup. He also expressed his concern about working with WorkOne and obligations to keep the employees. Mr. Bontreger said he didn'tthink there was any obligation tol keep them. ANDY BOERSMA /1 BUILDING COMMITTEE: Mr. Boersma said if they are going to get a [building] committee together before the end of the year, he would like to see one of the two IMWAISTRA/RURLCOSTS: Mr. Walstra said thatt theyl locked in another six months for gas at $3.04, which is down 36 cents and diesel fuel at $2.90, which is down 6 cents. Mr. Bontreger REIN BONTREGER /SPRAYFOAMBID FOR HIGHWAY BARN: Mr. Bontreger said they had a quote for spray foam on the interior of the building they are looking to upgrade for the Surveyor, Highway and Maintenance. He said one quote was $22,904.00 and the other was for a thicker foam for $34,356.00. Mr. Bontreger saidt they don'tneed tor make a decision today andt they can takei it under advisement. He said he also asked this vendor for a quote on an external surface There being no further business, Mr. Walstra moved to continue the meeting to Monday, September 16,2024 at 8:30A A.M.C.S.T., Mr. DeYoung seconded and the motion carried.  behalf ofthe Commissioners, Mr. Walstra supported and the: motion carried.  yes.  gentlemen coming in ont that committee.  thanked him for taking care oft that at] Keystone.  coating because, Mr. Urbano noticed ai fewl leaks.    REGULAR MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  SEPTEMBER 3,2024  PAGE477  LRR Rein) Bontreger, President  falawAE James A. Walstra, Vice President  ATTEST:  ne blt,pp.lyeder Donya G. Jordan, Auditor of] Jasper County