Approval August Financials

Commissioner Samuel Tran asked for a detailed explanation of parts of the quarterly financial statement. County Clerk Susan Walker answered several of his questions.

Executive Session pursuant to KSA 75-4319 (b)(2) for consultation with an attorney for the public body of agency, which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship

County Counselor Bob Johnson stepped in to update the commission on pending litigation in place of the insurance attorney, Forest Road. The commission returned to session, no action.

Old Business

Budget Discussion

“We approved a budget last Friday,” said Commissioner David Beerbower.

Tran asked Ben Hart for an audit report on the budget. Hart said that it looked good and nothing stood out to him as problematic.

County Clerk Susan Walker asked to speak. She said she went back through and refigured the wages and the employee benefit fund. She has concerns about having sufficient funds for employee health insurance. Open enrollment is upcoming in October.

Walker asked for a $100,137 increase in the employee benefit fund, which will take the mill to almost revenue neutral at 57.45.

“We’ve actually done something that no other commission has done in…seven years,” said Tran about the county’s 2026 budget. He expressed concern about the “budget creep” that last-minute changes represent.

“We’re trying to reset the paradigm,” by only taxing for what the county needs and making a plan for the future said Tran. “We can what-if this to death.”

Beerbower said he sees them handling the employee insurance decision in the way they did the county’s budget, with detailed analysis to stay within the spending limits set by the budget.

Tran and Commissioner Mika Milburn both wanted to keep the budget as is. Beerbower agreed and no action was taken.

Roads Discussion
Lynne Oharah – 95th & Unique

Oharah has found the mylar maps from 1987-89 that were used to inform the county maps until 2011.

He reiterated his request for all documentation for closing the 1056 feet of Unique Road on his property using statute 68.

“All I’m asking for is that that road be declared still open,” said Oharah. He also said they want minimal maintenance on the road.

County attorney Bob Johnson said he watched the video of meetings held during Covid masking  (possibly 2020 or 2021) where a Mr. Meeks made a long explanation of the situation and the need to find the 1986 resolution from when they had the public hearings about the roads.

Johnson plans to talk to Mr. Meeks to see what the follow-up was.

Oharah said the county has maintained the road in perpetuity, including the installation of a culvert this year.

Tran took issue with the culvert. He also pointed out that Oharah was a commissioner at the time of the meeting referred to by Johnson, and he did nothing to help his neighbors who came and spoke at that meeting. Tran then pointed out that Oharah stands to gain financially from the sale of the property.

“We’re trying to do something that’s legal,” said Tran. He said they cannot speed things up, and that the current commission has to repair damage from the past commissions and ensure these same types of things don’t happen in the future.

He said he has empathy for Oharah’s plight, but he will not rush his decision.

Beerbower ended the discussion at that point.

North National,

There are new speed limit signs on North National. Citizens are requesting that the four-way stop where 218th meets N. National be made a two-way stop, with traffic open from east to west, but still stopping north and south at that intersection.

Tran asked if changing the stop signs would cause traffic problems. Sheriff Bill Martin said as long as the vegetation is cleared and visibility is good, there shouldn’t be a problem.

Beerbower made a motion to remove the stop signs going east and west on North National at the 218th street intersection. The commission approved.

Eagle Road

Eagle Road, going to Garland, east of 69, was repaved in the last 2 years after 4 or 5 years as gravel. The speed limit was lowered while it was gravel, and folks are requesting that it be raised back up to 55 now that it’s paved.

Tran recommended talking to an engineer from KDOT to determine what the speed limit should be. No official action was taken.

190th Street Benefit District

County Counselor Bob Johnson said benefit districts are typically done through an HOA, but it is still feasible for the county to set one up without that. The agreement would include an increase in ad valorem taxes for those in the district to cover the cost of the road maintenance. He offered to visit with the owners and send proposal documents to the commissioners.

Beerbower asked if the Public Works Department could give an assessment, and the county would proceed from there.

Kenny Allen from public works said the road needs a good deal of work done before it can be paved.

CIC Access

Milburn said they are working to get view-only access for the commissioners and the sheriff.

Walker said that her office enters all the bills, as it is her responsibility by statute, and no other departments should be entering bills.

Tran said they need a standard operating procedure from either the clerk’s office or the sheriff’s office on how things are entered into the system.

Johnson will review the statute and advise next week.

Courthouse Elevator

Milburn said the current elevator company will not give a certificate of compliance because the elevator doesn’t meet requirements. They are looking for bids on repairing the elevator.

Tran offered to help by reviewing the contract for repair if needed.

108 W 2nd

Milburn had no updates for that. The county paid $162,700 in 2013 for the building. The plan was to build a parking lot out of the lot behind it as well. They are waiting to decide what to do with the building until it is emptied by moving the sixth judicial and driver’s license department.

Crawkan

Tran asked about adding a “termination with convenience” clause for the county to the contract, and Johnson said he’d look into it.

Planning Commission Terms – Beerbower

Beerbower announced that Planning Commission members with one-year terms are Pete Owenby and Jeremy Milburn; two-year term members are Brent Smith and Bo Casper; three-year term members are Kyle Parks, Brian Ashworth II, and Seth Tucker.

Bob Johnson said he would work to get the first planning commission meeting up and going.

Resolution 1125 Review

Beerbower wants to “scratch the whole thing and start over.”

He handed out notes on changes, and they will bring it up again at the Oct. 6 meeting.

New Business
Credit App for Enterprise – Bill Martin and Ben Hart

Sheriff Martin took a moment to recognize Sergeant Scott Hillman of Hays, Kansas, who was killed in the line of duty over the weekend.

Martin said he is awaiting information from the clerk’s office to fill out the Master Equity Lease Agreement with Enterprise. He is also awaiting word back from legal counsel regarding agreement.

He plans to come back to the commission with the completed documents at the next meeting.

Resolution – Law Enforcement

Johnson, Hart, and Martin addressed the commission regarding a resolution that would fix the unidentified fund discussed in a previous meeting.

Milburn expressed displeasure with the resolution, and a discussion about the use of funding from the housing of out-of-county prisoners followed.

Beerbower and representatives of the sheriff’s department were in favor of using those funds to help with the purchase of bigger-ticket items the department needs, such as replacing vehicles and upgrading radios.

Tran said those funds fluctuate a great deal and cannot be used to build the sheriff department’s budget. He also pointed out that Sheriff Bill Martin is the CEO of his department and is fully responsible for his department’s budget.

Tran asked Martin what he expects in the future regarding payment for housing at the county jail. Martin said he hopes it will stay the same. They only fill the jail to 85% capacity with out-of-county inmates to make sure they always have the necessary space.

Martin went on to say he would not spend from the fund without bringing it before the commissioners first.

“We’re just trying to capture the revenue that’s already there in a resolution form, not create a different fund,” said Hart.

“You guys have been doing this” since 2019, said Johnson.

Beerbower said they would bring it back in two weeks.

Motion to move normal meeting from the 13th of October to the 14th. Passed.

Department Updates
Public Works – Kenny Allen and Dustin Hall

Tran thanked the department for patching North Union in Mapleton.

KDOT Grant – Bridge 19.2-Q.0. The grant is for 2027. The plan is to set aside some of the expected FEMA money to help with the county’s 10% of the $82,000 cost to rebuild the bridge.

Tran asked how their meeting went with Enterprise. Hall said the meeting went well, but they want to test it out before committing. If it works out, they would work to replace a third of their fleet each year until they were fully enrolled in the program.

“For us, I think it would work out in the long run,” said Hall. The two trucks they are replacing are mowing trucks. The department has two broken-down trucks now, which they will trade in.

Milburn said she would love to have them figure it up both ways, leasing, and continuing to purchase vehicles on their own.

Hall said it is a lot easier for Enterprise to sell used vehicles than it is for Public Works as a department.

They discussed leasing equipment like graders and dump trucks as well.

Transfer of Thomas Quarry

The commission approved the signing of reclamation paperwork for the quarry, transferring it to the new company that took over from the county.

Commission Comments

Milburn: “I want to acknowledge that the recent changes, while not easy, were both necessary and effective,” she said of the budget process. She believes the changes made will position the county for a better future.

Tran: “I’m happy that we got the budget through.” He learned a lot, and the vast majority of the county officials and department heads are willing to tighten their belts and do what’s needed. He’s cautiously optimistic about 2026. He anticipates the work on the insurance to be a challenge, but that the commission will rise to the occasion.

Beerbower thanked the commission for their work on the budget and looked forward to the strategic planning and insurance work coming up.