March 2, 2021                                                           Tuesday 9:00 am

The Bourbon County Commission met in open session with all three Commissioners and the County Counselor present, the County Clerk was able to watch the meeting live on YouTube.  The meeting was held at the City of Fort Scott Commission room.

Also present were the following; (some were present for a portion of the meeting and some were present for the entire meeting), Jason Silvers with the Fort Scott Tribune, Jody Hoener, Susan Bancroft, Anne Dare, Nancy Van Etten, Mr. & Mrs. Clint Walker, Kim Simons, Michael Hoyt and Mark Mccoy.

Lynne made a motion to amend the agenda to allow Juliana to speak with the Commissioners (over the phone) regarding Apex energy, Clifton seconded and all approved.

Juliana told the Commissioners that the wind project is on track, she said they have secured the proper financial funding and they will begin building this year.  She told the Commissioners that WEC Energy Group had purchased Jayhawk Wind.  She said they would oversee the project and IEA would be the general contractor for the project.  She said a renewable power purchase agreement has been executed.  Jim Harris said he had read on the internet that the power they produce will be sent to Nebraska; Juliana said the energy will go onto the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) and the energy will flow to where the demand for it is needed.  Jim questioned if Evergy wasn’t a player anymore with the wind project; Juliana said that agreement had been mutually dissolved.  Lynne asked who the owner of the substation is for the project; Julian said the substation was an asset of Jayhawk so it is now owned by WEC.  There was a brief discussion over the recent controlled power outages due to the weather, Lynne said that outage was controlled by SPP.  Justin said the contracts for the windfarm are still valid.  Juliana said they would be starting doing grading the end of this month. She said Jeff Spangler is still a contact for this project.  Anne Dare discussed who owned the substation; she said Jeff Spangler told her it was owned by Evergy.  Juliana said there are two structures; the substation is all of the underground collection cabling that goes to the substation which then goes into the switchyard (the switchyard is owned by Evergy).  Anne Dare discussed the new weight restrictions of 20 ton from K47-K7; Lynne said the County has no control over the weight restriction on those State highways.  Apex/Jayhawk was not scheduled on the Commission agenda, Anne Dare was disappointed she didn’t know they were going to be speaking today, she asked the Commissioners when they learned they were speaking today; Lynne said he learned yesterday and Clifton said he learned today, Lynne said he received a call from Juliana and an email with the announcement of the selling to WEC.

The Commissioners signed culvert permits for Nick Leighty at 651 160^th St., Kyle Brown at 1163 250^th St. and Joyce Flanner at 2542 Locust Road.

Eric Bailey said the bridge crew is working in an area east of 215^th & Xavier.  He said they had finished a project on Maple near the Blythe ranch.

Eric reported damage to signs from an accident on 240^th; he said they are putting the signs back up. Eric said the rock crusher is now working and they are working 10 hour days to try and get caught up.  Eric said they are working with Buckley Powder to schedule a blast at the Beth Quarry (blast should be in 2-3 weeks).

Eric asked if the north door outside of the Public Works entrance could be unlocked during business hours so that customers could meet with the Public Works office, later in the meeting Jim Harris made a motion to unlock the north door of the Courthouse during business hours, Clifton seconded and all approved.

Eric said the County should receive approximately $5,700 from FEMA for the 2019 flood.  He said they are still working on this.

Clifton said he had been asked why the stop signs in front of the FSCC rodeo dorm had been placed there and asked if they were needed; Lynne said the signs were put up to control the speed in the area.

Clifton made a motion to go into a 6 minute executive session for KSA 75-4319(b)(1)to discuss personnel matters of individual non-elected personnel to protect their privacy to discuss employees seeking medical leave, the Commissioners will meet in another location and reconvene in the Commission room at 9:38 am, Jim seconded and all approved, (the session included the Commissioners, Eric Bailey and Susan Bancroft).  At 9:38, Lynne made a motion to come out of executive session and resume the normal meeting and said no action, Jim seconded and all approved.

The Commissioners discussed unlocking the east doors of the Courthouse; the request to unlock the doors was made because law enforcement had issues getting into the Courthouse on a recent call for help.  Lynne said he asked the person letting people in the Courthouse (taking temperatures and handing out masks) if they could control people entering if the doors were unlocked, their response was they couldn’t control them and they would come in without a mask if they chose to.  Lynne suggested working with the IT department to allow access by a key fob at the north, west and south entrance.   Clifton made a motion that he be allowed to meet with the Sheriff and Police department and he make a decision regarding the northeast door of the Courthouse and that he work with Shane on this issue, Jim seconded, Bobby suggested giving every employee a key fob, Susan suggested placing a lockbox with a keypad and a key inside the building to enter the building, all approved the motion.

Bobby Reed said the Sheriff asked the Commissioners to clarify the stop signs and the speed limit near the college rodeo dorms, he said going one direction on the bridge is 35 mph vs. going the opposite direction which is a different speed.

Bobby previously met with the Commissioners to request that debris from the 4-H building roof be deposited at the Landfill for free; he clarified that the 4-H building is a 501c5, Justin said they are a not for profit organization.  Jim made a motion to allow the Fair Board to dump the roof debris from the 4-H building at no charge, Clifton seconded and all approved. Bobby will work with Eric Bailey on the dumping of the debris.  Clifton made a motion to allow Justin to work with the Fair Board (pro bono) to help them transfer from a 501c5 to a 501c3 if they want to, Jim seconded and all approved.

Justin Meeks told the Commissioners they had bids (Justin did not have the bids at the meeting) to make the restrooms A.D.A. compliant at the Drivers License building; Jim made a motion to accept the low bid to make the restrooms there A.D.A. compliant, Clifton seconded and all approved.

Justin said they are still moving forward with the tax sale.

Justin briefly discussed a Commissioner quorum and ways to avoid a KOMA violation.

Clifton made a motion to allow Jim Harris to visit a micro processing plant on March 12^th in Springhill, Lynne seconded and all approved.

Justin said they are still emailing between St. Martens academy and trying to figure out the paperwork on how they joined the sewer district.  Susan Bancroft said they are looking at putting a meter on their lift station and said no sewer district map exists.   Nancy Van Etten asked Justin if he was still working on an interlocal sewer district agreement; she said there still isn’t an agreement in place on what someone has to pay to connect to the district.  Susan said they are still working on this.  Nancy asked if the sewer district bonds had been refinance; Lynne said they are still working on refinancing them.

Anne Dare asked when the Courthouse front steps were going to be done; Lynne said they are still working on them, Justin said they were waiting for the weather to dry up to apply a needed product.

Anne told the Commissioners that masking is a mandate and not a law.  She asked what the status was regarding the meeting Will Wallis had with the Commissioners regarding the City of Uniontown’s higher gas prices due to the recent cold weather (Uniontown purchased gas in bulk for distribution to their customers and ran out of that gas, but will now be charged a higher rate from the supplier); Lynne said the City of Uniontown is going to discuss this at an upcoming meeting.

Clifton commented that Jayhawk wind is a multi-billion dollar company and said companies don’t let anyone know the decisions they are making until the decision is made.  He said the windfarm has no control over how the energy they produce is dispersed; he said their energy is added to the power pool.  Jim said he was disappointed that the energy wasn’t staying in this area.

Jim Harris suggested the Commissioners have a work session to discuss a larger rock crusher; this will be discussed again at a later date.  Susan said the City has a work session on Tuesday evenings and said this could be incorporated with their work session.

At 10:48, Clifton made a motion to adjourn, Jim seconded and all approved.

THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

OF BOURBON COUNTY, KANSAS

(ss) Lynne Oharah, Chairman

(ss) Jim Harris, Commissioner

(ss) Clifton Beth, Commissioner

ATTEST:

Kendell Mason, Bourbon County Clerk

March 9, 2021, Approved Date

Agenda

Bourbon County Commission Room

1st Floor, County Courthouse

210 S. National Avenue

Fort Scott, KS 66701

Tuesdays starting at 9:00

Date: March 16, 2021

1^st District-Lynne Oharah Minutes: Approved: _______________

2^nd District-Jim Harris Corrected: _______________

3^rd District-Clifton Beth Adjourned at: _______________

County Clerk-Kendell Mason

MEETING WILL BE HELD IN COMMISSION ROOM. ANYONE ATTENDING THE MEETING WILL BE REQUIRED TO WEAR A MASK PROVIDED BY THE COUNTY. MUST MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING.

Call to Order

• Flag Salute
• Approval of Minutes from previous meeting
• Eric Bailey – Road and Bridge Report
• Clint Anderson – Position Opening in Appraisers Office
• Shane Walker, Dave Bruner, Traci Reed – Moving Dispatch into Old Jail Area
• Lynne Oharah – Opening Courthouse
• Lynne Oharah – Blue Cross Blue Shield Grant Money
• Lynne Oharah – Eliminating Hiring Freeze
• County Counselor Comment
• Public Comment
• Commission Comment

Justifications for Executive Session:

          KSA 75-4319(b)(1) To discuss personnel matters of individual nonelected personnel to protect their privacy

          KSA 75-4319(b)(2) For consultation with an attorney for the public body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship

          KSA 75-4319(b)(3) To discuss matters relating to employer-employee negotiations whether or not in consultation with the representative(s) of the body or agency

          KSA 75-4319(b)(4) To discuss data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trust, and individual proprietorships

          KSA 75-4319(b)(6) For the preliminary discussion of the acquisition of real property

          KSA 75-4319(b)(12) To discuss matters relating to security measures, if the discussion of such matters at an open meeting would jeopardize such security measures.

Agenda

Bourbon County Commission Room

1st Floor, County Courthouse

210 S. National Avenue

Fort Scott, KS 66701

Tuesdays starting at 9:00

Date: March 12, 2021

1^st District-Lynne Oharah Minutes: Approved: _______________

2^nd District-Jim Harris Corrected: _______________

3^rd District-Clifton Beth Adjourned at: _______________

County Clerk-Kendell Mason

MEETING WILL BE HELD IN COMMISSION ROOM. ANYONE ATTENDING THE MEETING WILL BE REQUIRED TO WEAR A MASK PROVIDED BY THE COUNTY. MUST MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING.

Call to Order

2:30pm

• Flag Salute
• Lynne Oharah – Windfarm Designee

The Regular City Council Meeting on March 9, 2021 at Uniontown City Hall, was called to order at 7:00 PM by Mayor Jurgensen. Council members present were Jess Ervin, Danea Esslinger, Josh Hartman (7:04), Amber Kelly, and Charles Wehry. Also in attendance for all or part of the meeting were City Treasurer Charlene Bolinger, Codes Enforcement Officer Doug Coyan, City Superintendent Bobby Rich, City Clerk Sally Johnson, Loren Korte, Matt Korte, Katie Towne, Mike Towne, Lynn Oharah, Leah Hall, Derek Hall, Seth Martin, and Bill Griffith.

Mayor Jurgensen moved the Old Business item “Whether to pass on gas daily gas prices in February to customers” to between Consent Agenda and Department Reports to accommodate those in attendance.

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS/PROJECTS

Personal Service Insurance, Loren & Matt Korte – Gave a presentation of the proposed renewal of the City’s insurance coverages. There is a nominal increase in overall premium.

CITIZENS REQUEST

None

FINANCIAL REPORT

Treasurer Bolinger presented the February Treasurer’s Report. Beginning Checking Account Balance for all funds was $448,749.10, Receipts $39,679.74, Transfers Out $3,026.00, Expenditures $57,121.66, Checking Account Closing Balance $428,281.18. Bank Statement Balance $438,575.77, including Checking Account Interest of $34.16, Outstanding Deposits $0, Outstanding Checks $10,294.59, Reconciled Balance $428,281.18. Water Utilities Certificates of Deposit $26,943.16, Sewer Utilities Certificate of Deposit $17,415.62, Gas Utilities Certificates of Deposit $23,238.93, Total All Funds, including Certificates of Deposit $495,878.89. Year-to-Date Interest in Checking Acct is $70.27 and Utility CDs $64.80 for a Total Year-to-Date Interest of $135.07. Also included the status of the Projects Checking Account for the month of February 2021, Beginning Balance $225.33, Receipts $0, Expenditures $225.33, Ending Balance $0. February Transfers from Sewer Utility Fund to Sewer Revolving Loan $1,400.00, from Water Utility Fund to GO Water Bond & Interest $1,622.00, for Total Transfers of $3,026.00. Net Loss for the month of February $20,467.92, Year-to-Date Net Income $27,182.71. Budget vs Actual Water Fund YTD Revenue $16,508.49 (16.5%), Expenditures $16,325.66 (13.2%); Sewer Fund YTD Revenue $5,768.94 (16.6%), Expenditures $3,993.61 (9.2%); Gas Fund YTD Revenue $40,828.94 (31.6%), Expenditures $19,879.57 (6.0%); General Fund YTD Revenue $39,038.01 (34.1%), Expenditures $14,918.32 (9.1%); and Special Highway YTD Revenue $1,734.33 (29.0%), Expenditures $0 (0.0%). The March 2021 estimated payables including estimate gas supply invoice in the amount of $255,046.33 were presented.

CONSENT AGENDA

Motion by Ervin, Second by Esslinger, Approved 5-0, to approve Consent Agenda including:

• Minutes of February 9, 2021 Regular Council Meeting and February 18, 2021 Special Council Meeting
• Treasurer’s Report, Monthly Transaction Report & Accounts Payables

Whether to pass on gas daily gas prices in February to customers – The latest estimated invoice amount is $232, 624. The 5-year historical average cost for February is $3,380, leaving an extraordinary amount of $229,244. State legislature passed House Substitute for Senate Bill No. 88 City Utility Low-Interest Loan Program to allow cities to borrow from the State to help pay for the extraordinary costs from the extreme winter weather. Clerk Johnson explained that we would have to use as much of our reserves as possible to qualify for the loan. She has determined reserves available for this bill would be $130,000, leaving $99,244 that would have to be covered by the loan.

Motion by Ervin, Second by Hartman, Approved 5-0 to adopt Resolution 2021-0309-1 authorizing the City of Uniontown, Kansas to apply for the City Utility Low-Interest Loan Program for the purpose of obtaining a loan from the State of Kansas to finance extraordinary electric and/or natural gas costs incurred during the extreme winter weather event of February 2021.

Motion by Kelly, Second by Ervin, Approved 5-0 pass Ordinance No. 193 authorizing the execution of a loan agreement between the City of Uniontown, Kansas and the State of Kansas, acting by and through the Kansas State Treasurer for the purpose of obtaining a loan pursuant to the City Utility Low-Interest Loan Program to finance extraordinary electric and /or natural gas costs incurred during the extreme winter weather event of February 2021; establishing a dedicated source of revenue for repayment of such loan; authorizing and approving certain documents in connection therewith; and authorizing certain other actions in connection with the loan agreement.

It was agreed by the council that only the loan with interest should be passed on to the customers. The loan term was agreed to be 60 months. Clerk Johnson had calculated February usage for all customers and estimated monthly payments based on latest estimated figures. She will send a statement to each customer with the full amount due. Payment options will be included. She will also establish an accounts receivable system to track receipts and payments. All payments will be used exclusively for loan repayment.

Motion by Ervin, Second by Hartman, Approved 5-0 to send each customer a statement for full amount due. They may pay full amount up front or 60 monthly payments with interest possibly changing every January. Customers will be eligible to pay off at any time without penalty. Statements will be sent at least annually or upon request to City Clerk. City Clerk will establish an accounts receivable system to track receipts and payment. If the customer chooses to close gas account, any balance due will be added to the final bill. If the City is reimbursed from Federal, State, or litigation sources the customers will be reimbursed accordingly.

DEPARTMENT REPORTS

Superintendent Rich reported that the school has a big pile of dirt they will give to the city that could be used to construct a berm on the north end of town to divert water flow into town.

Motion by Ervin, Second by Hartman, Approved 5-0 to accept dirt from school

Codes Enforcement Officer Coyan addressed a property that needs cleaned up that we are getting nowhere with. The information was submitted to our attorney but a court summons was never issued. It was suggested to send out request for qualifications for an attorney.

He also addressed a reported dog bite. The dog owner was here to explain to Council what they had and are doing to keep their dogs in their control.

Mayor Jurgensen reported that he has been receiving complaints about the camper parked on Second Street near the intersection with Fulton St blocking sightline for the intersection. He also has received complaints about the Bradford pear tree branches impeding two-way traffic on Clay Street and Second Street.

It was also reported that 405 Clay has a big limb hanging down that is blocking sightline.

Clerk Johnson let the Council know that Fort Scott’s citywide yard sales are May 8. Last month it was approved to have either the week before or week after Fort Scott, but it usually rains then.

Motion by Kelly, Second by Hartman, Approved 5-0 to hold the Citywide Yard Sales on August 28.

A homeowner has requested his meter deposits be returned to him by check instead of applied to his account. Historically we apply deposits of homeowners back to their account in December after at least a year of on-time payments. His would be applied in December this year. Council directed Clerk Johnson to cut homeowner a check for deposit refund and present amendments to Ordinance No. 159 stating the deposit refund policy.

JBHS LLC notified us this week that the service window has been delivered to his house but not all parts were delivered. He is following up with the company.

COUNCIL REPORT

Councilman Ervin – nothing

Councilwoman Esslinger – nothing

Councilman Hartman – nothing

Councilwoman Kelly – nothing

Councilman Wehry – nothing

Mayor Jurgensen – nothing

OLD BUSINESS

Utility Hearings – Mayor Jurgensen wanted to prepare hearing officers that there may be several request hearing this month due to the increased gas usage due to the extreme cold. Hartman and Esslinger are the hearing officers for this month.

NEW BUSINESS

None

Moved by Ervin, Second by Kelly, Approved 5-0, to adjourn at 9:47PM

Agenda

Bourbon County Commission Room

1st Floor, County Courthouse

210 S. National Avenue

Fort Scott, KS 66701

Tuesdays starting at 9:00

Date: March 11, 2021

1^st District-Lynne Oharah Minutes: Approved: _______________

2^nd District-Jeff Fischer Corrected: _______________

3^rd District-Nick Ruhl Adjourned at: _______________

County Clerk-Kendell Mason

MEETING WILL BE HELD IN COMMISSION ROOM. ANYONE ATTENDING THE MEETING WILL BE REQUIRED TO WEAR A MASK PROVIDED BY THE COUNTY. MUST MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING.

10:00 Election Canvass