KENTON COUNTY FISCAL COURT
MEETING MINUTES
MAY 25, 2004
The regular meeting of the Kenton County Fiscal Court convened at the Independence Courthouse on May 25, 2004. Judge-Executive Ralph A. Drees presided over the meeting with Commissioners Barbara Black, Adam Koenig and Dan Humpert; Deputy Judge-Executive Scott Kimmich; County Attorney Garry Edmondson; County Treasurer Ivan Frye; Human Resources Director Joe Shriver; Emergency Management Director Ed Burk; Police Chief Bill Dorsey; Road Engineer Charlie Meyer; Jailer Terry Carl; Animal Shelter Director Dan Evans; Assistant County Attorney Brandon Voelker; Emergency Management Director Kirk Rinehart; Court Reporter Cathy Johnston; and Guests in attendance.
The invocation was said and pledge of allegiance led by Commissioner Adam Koenig.
Judge Drees asked for approval of the minutes of May 11, 2004. The minutes were unanimously approved with the exception of a correction on page two that had previously been discussed and corrected.
DELEGATIONS
Official welcoming home of Police Officer Alan Johnson, Chief Bill Dorsey-In introducing Officer Johnson to the court, Chief Dorsey said he had been trained by the U.S. Government in nuclear, biological, chemical and hazmat and redrafted three times following the 9/11 incident. A placard was made at the county garage in honor of Officer Johnson saying "Godspeed Alan Johnson" that stayed up until his return from Iraq. Upon his return from Iraq, all personnel of the Kenton County Police Department signed the back of the sign and it was presented to him on behalf of the officers and staff.
Officer Johnson thanked the court for the presentation.
Chief Dorsey recognized Officer Johnson's wife and their five children and other family members.
Kenton Conservancy Board, Larisa Keith reporting-Ms. Keith introduced Dr. William Bryant, Thomas More College and Chairman of the Conservancy.
Dr. William Bryant announced the conservancy is a community based, nonprofit organization for the benefit of people and nature in Kenton County. He also gave the mission statement, goals, some accomplishments of the past year, board development, grants received and fund raising, the purchasing of land, further education for the county, and showed ways the county can benefit from the use of the conservancy via a power point presentation.
Judge Drees asked if there were any questions. Commissioner Koenig said he was the fiscal court's representative to the conservancy and it had been an exciting year and that soon they would have their feasibility study returned. He also thanked Larisa Keith and thanked the planning commission for letting her spend some of her time with the conservancy.
Dr. Bryant asked the members of the conservancy in attendance to stand and be recognized.
Judge Drees asked what the restrictions on easement were and Dr. Bryant answered that one of the items being dealt with was where a person can live on the land and take care of it and give up some of the property value. Some of the easements are set up so they are long term, and even after the property is sold or given to someone else, the easement will continue.
Judge Drees also asked if an easement is located where development is ongoing, would they be able to cross the sewer lines and water lines. Dr. Bryant answered the conservancy could grant permission of this type.
Dr. Bryant said the conservancy was not a federal or state organization dealing with these type of issues but was working with partnerships who are not only working with developers, but also water and sewer districts who are working together for the common good. Not only is green space, conservation and preservation space looked at, but it is also looked to see if what is being done is for the value of land in the county.
Judge Drees said it was important as to how an easement would read before it is put on someone's land for what would be allowable so there would not be any future problems, because the roadways in the county need to continue going the right way in the future.
Kenton County Soil Conservation District, John Heist reporting-Mr. Heist said the district is now 60 years old and is one of 121 districts statewide. He gave a presentation by power point and talked about the staff and board of supervisors, partnering organizations, grants received and disbursed to county residents, district initiatives, and USDA-NRCS (Natural Resource Conservation Service) contributions.
The NRCS provides all office space at no cost to the district, pay the phone bills, internet access, some supplies, and most of the office equipment. For staff, a district conservationist is locally on site. Free publications and resources are provided and in exchange the district provides administrative and other personnel assistance.
Mr. Heist introduced Ms. Harold who asked for any q uestions on the presentation of Mr. Heist. Ms. Harold said that conservation districts are in partnerships that involve the Federal Government, state and local governments. No salaries are paid out of the grants received at the district, but pay for such things as carting away dead animals or cleaning up dump sites.
The request for budget amount this year from the fiscal court is $69,000 that is needed to adequately serve the citizens, and the projected amount that is to be received from the court is $45,000. Staff and resources are shared with the other two Northern Kentucky counties and each of those counties provide $68,000 or more. Kenton County is operating at about 75 percent of the other counties and the same services are provided. There is a question as to whether or not the services can be sustained without additional funding.
A reference was made that conservation districts are one of the best kept secrets which is a comment that is heard throughout the country, but the local district wants people to know about our services. Some of the publicity has had to be cut back because of budget constraints and it is felt there is too much to be offered to keep the services unknown and help is needed to get the word out.
The Kentucky Revised Statute, number 262.200, relates to the role of the fiscal court in relation to the conservation district. Operating funds are annually requested from the court with the appropriate documentation. If the fiscal court fails to approve a requested budget, it shall present a list of specific objections and suggested corrections to the board in writing within a reasonable time that provides the county with an opportunity to provide some guidance on budget cuts. Some of the staff have not taken the per diem for a period of two to three years because it cannot be afforded to do what needs to be done. Funds for an approved budget shall be provided by the general fund or the levy of a millage tax, which is done in Campbell County, and may be something that could be considered in Kenton County within the boundaries of the county.
The Division of Conservation in Frankfort would be worked with to see how this is done in other counties if this is something the county chooses to do. It is hard to do the work that needs to be done with the limited funds and there has even been some talk of the Kenton County Conservation District shutting down. All of the other funding that is provided would go with it. Outside funds will continue to be sought to accomplish the work.
Ms. Harold introduced Mary Catherine Dickerson of the staff who has not only received state awards, but also national awards and better ways are being sought to better serve the citizens of Kenton County. Ms. Harold also introduced Sherri Carran who is a supervisor at the conservancy.
Judge Drees thanked Ms. Harold and the Kenton County Conservation District for their report.
Fire recruit graduates, Kirk Rinehart reporting-Mr. Rinehart said this would be the second recruit class and consists of 12 persons who have put in over 117 hours of training and also thanked each family for their support of the recruits while in training.
Chief Paul LaFontaine came forward and introduced each graduate from several fire districts and Judge Drees handed out the certificates as they came forward.
Squad report, Ed Burk reporting-The April report had been passed out to fiscal court members that included a list of failures and responses for areas in the county. Park Hills has tendered their license to the city of Ft. Wright and they will be contracting with them.
The warrant report was also included and there were 598 warrants served and 604 warrants entered.
People are still being sought who are interested in volunteering for the community emergency response teams. If anyone is interested, please call 392-1488 to enroll in one of the two classes either in August or September, with one in Erlanger and one in Ft. Mitchell, and someone will get back in touch with the caller.
Commissioner Koenig said he would like to commend Park Hills on tendering their license to Ft. Wright, and Mayor Hellman should be given a pat on the back for what he had done.
Dog park report, Wayne Spiegel reporting-One of the things to bring back into focus is that back in December the group that is interested in building the park was given the stipulations they had to meet of which part was funding, capital improvement and maintenance for four years. About a week ago, it was apprised that they believed they had met all aspects of the conditions and the group sat down and looked over what was presented. It appears they have surpassed the $43,000 goal of capital improvements and maintenance which is about $5,100 per year for four years which totals about $24,000. The cash is available and a number of donations that add into the value such as benches and other amenities that you put into a park.
Deputy Judge Kimmich said that Assistant County Attorney Voelker had some comments. There was a meeting with Mr. Voelker, Mr. Spiegel, and Mr. Voelker last week with Mr. Biedernharn and Ms. Wadsworth and others with the paw park to discuss the issues and they are ready to go, but the county attorney's office has other information as it relates to insurance.
Assistant County Attorney Voelker said one of the conditions was that insurance be purchased in the amount of $250,000 per incident with a $1,000,000 umbrella. There is some concern as to what would be covered. One insurance company did not want to cover dog bites; typically, those would go to the homeowner of the person that owns the dog. The concern is if that person were not insured, where would that liability rest? For the past four to five days we have been trying to put together some type of insurance policy to go out and see what is available on the market. There is now a search going on to try to find out what is available with the concerns that have been expressed. We can get a copy of the policy and access the situation at that point.
There are some concerns with the fiscal court that if we are the insurer based on our insurance status, that any claim that would be made, would come out of the county's coffers because we are self-insured. Our next meeting is within the next two weeks, and if we could have more time to work through to finalize the plan and find out if insurance is available or not, and if it is unavailable, that can be reported. Right now, the answer is not known.
Commissioner Humpert asked if one person from the paw park could address this and Judge Drees asked for a spokesman. Mr. Tom Biedernharn said he thought they had finished what needed to be done and there is a lot of interest in this in the county. He also said that when the committee left the meeting on last Monday with Mr. Kimmich and others, everything seemed to be pretty well under control. Mr. Biedernharn asked the people of Northern Kentucky who had voiced their opinion that they let it now be known. There has been $15,000 more collected than what was expected and there are businesses in Kenton County that are also interested. Maybe when the insurance is found out about, the committee may not be able to afford it. The committee would like to know when there will be a specific answer as to date and time when we will know about the insurance. The money collected needs to be returned if this is not going to work. Mr. Biedernharn then asked for questions.
Commissioner Humpert asked how Ft. Thomas did with insurance. Mr. Biedernharn answered that it was all covered and that Ms. Wadsworth could address this. He said he thought this was not any different than children going to a park and playing on the swings. He said the committee did not wish to wait two weeks, but they would if they had to.
Judge Drees said the county still had concerns and after two weeks there would be an answer.
Ms. Lorita Wadsworth came before the court to say she had been working on the dog park for over a year and she was not ready to give up on it. The committee was waiting to see if they would be covered under the self-insurance for the county. She has researched the market and the one she found was not the one the county wanted the dog park to have and the other kind cannot be bought.
An amount of $50,000 was raised in a five-month period and the committee has worked very hard because this is a much needed and wanted project. Contributions of concrete benches, garbage cans, trees and plaques and so much more has been donated to see this work. This park will be an asset for Kenton County and all that is asked is the court to work with the committee to make it happen. This shows what the people of Kenton County want to happen and it is hoped this can soon be brought to a close.
Judge Drees said he knew the committee had worked hard to make this come about but there are people in apartments who do not have homeowners insurance and said there would be an answer within two weeks.
Commissioner Humpert said he was optimistic that something could be worked out and the dog park could be up and going.
Mr. Biedernharn asked for a time and the court answered that it would be within two weeks.
Commissioner Black said what had to be kept in mind is this is a county of over 152,000 people with a lot of persons on fixed income. The county is self-insured which means that when there are claims, they are paid out of the pool that has been created from various agencies and employees in the county. The fiscal court is ultimately accountable for how this money is used and how insurance claims are paid. When funds get depleted because of multiple lawsuits, those funds have to be replaced and we have to be very, very careful not to expose Kenton Countians to increased costs for our self-insurance. We serve as gatekeepers along with the Judge as to what liability we expose the citizens of Kenton County to and there are reasons as to why we do not want to bring the organization into the county self-insurance pool.
Also on the lease agreement in number four regarding maintenance, there is something else that needs to be addressed in a future meeting. It says, "The parties agree that the fiscal court may serve as the contracting agency for any vendors, but that any monies associated with the construction shall be reimbursed to the fiscal court by the FKPK." My opinion is that any maintenance done on the paw park or any services rendered need to be entirely separate from our Public Works Department and our Parks and Recreation Department. Any contracting that is done should be done through the paw park and they need to make those decisions and county employees should not utilized for these services. Part of the problem over the years is having employees to keep the parks in good shape and this should not be a tug of war. It is requested that we either strike that sentence or that another sentence be inserted indicating that any maintenance be contracted by the paw park with whoever the committee feels meets the requirements to do the work.
Commissioner Humpert said he thought there were a number of professional landscapers with which the paw park could get a contract and asked County Attorney Edmondson if there were any problems with this.
Attorney Edmondson said the lease agreement says that the group will contract with the parties to provide the necessary maintenance so it already envisions this. If you add the phrase, "exclusive of the fiscal court," this would take care of that.
Commissioner Koenig said that it would only take one event to drain someone's pockets that was responsible for what happens, and tonight we will have the first reading of a budget that only cuts out money and none is added to it. It had to be cut in order to get our budget back on a solid foundation and we cannot add anything that would possibly drain from our monies because they are dwindling fast and will not be there to draw from if we don't right the ship.
Mr. Biedernharn thanked Wayne Spiegel for his help and guidance on the paw park and recommended to the court that if another citizen comes to the court with a project, there should be one person appointed to guide them through the process.
FINANCE AND BUDGETS
Mr. Ivan Frye announced the court had a copy of the claims list dated May 14 for approval.
Commissioner Black said there is a lot of employee testing and asked if this was a period of time for all departments. Mr. Frye answered this was that time of year for Public Works and Parks when a lot of testing is run through every day for part time and seasonal employees. There are more in April and May than any other time of the year.
Commissioner Black also said that on page eleven there are two charges under fleet operations with Southeastern Equipment Company for the exact amounts and asked if these were duplicates. Mr. Frye said he would check to make sure this was not a duplicate.
Commissioner Humpert said he noticed there were a number of instances where Canada Life was written checks and deducted on pages ten, nine, seven, and five. Mr. Frye said this was a reversal of an invoice and said he would also check out these entries. Canada Life is a life insurance policy on employees and this is why the entry is in so many times because it is paid out of each fund.
OLD BUSINESS
There was not any old business to come before the court.
NEW BUSINESS
HANDOUT NO. 04-34-Authorize County Judge to sign an agreement extending a contract with Hilltop Stone, LLC, Ivan Frye reporting: In this case, the company has agreed to extend this contract at the current terms.
Commissioner Black made a motion for the authorization with Commissioner Humpert's second. The motion was unanimously approved following roll call.
HANDOUT NO. 04-35-Approve payment to the Kenton County Clerk's Office for calculation of motor vehicle and boat bills for 2004, Ivan Frye reporting: This is an annual invoice of which the clerk gets 15 cents from us and 15 cents from the state for preparing the automobile tax bills. Following the approval of the court, it goes to the state for them to pay their share.
Commissioner Humpert moved for approval; seconded by Commissioner Black. Following roll call, the motion was unanimously approved.
ORDINANCES
ORDINANCE NO. 531.94-First reading dealing with roadways, Brandon Voelker reporting: This was drafted more than a year ago in response to continuing issues with regard to encroachment permits on county roads causing all kinds of problems such as the filling of gutters. It is very detailed and in essence it puts some strength into encroachment permits.
Commissioner Humpert said there was a real problem with the roads when someone builds a house out in the county and the proper pipes are not put in to deal with rain and other problems and asked County Engineer Charlie Meyer if this would take care of this problem.
Mr. Meyer answered that it would and Commissioner Humpert then asked if improper prior ones that had been installed could be redone. Attorney Edmondson said this could not be done but it would impact the ones that are there that are not properly maintained.
Commissioner Humpert asked if this maintenance could be charged back to the landowner or if this is a county problem. Attorney Edmondson said this ordinance gives the county the authority to make owners repair what has been done wrong and there is no other place in the county where it says this.
Deputy Judge Kimmich said there are some places where the road has been ditched in the morning and the landowner was not happy and when they had finished in the afternoon they had literally filled the ditch back up, planted grass seed and put straw on it because water was running off their front yard, across the neighbor's and flooding their house.
Mr. Meyer said that the maintenance of ditches has been a long-term problem for the county. The roads would last a lot longer if there were adequate ditches for proper drainage.
Judge Drees asked who was going to be responsible for controlling this ordinance and making it happen.
Mr. Meyer said that when new homes are built, the homeowner is supposed to get a permit to put the pipe in and it would be that the county would be best served to put the entrance pipes in and the homeowner would reimburse the county.
Judge Drees said that if it is new construction, why couldn't the area planning commission do this while they are doing permits?
Attorney Edmondson said that before they get their building and zoning permits they have to be sure to get their encroachment permit from the road superintendent. The statute requires that a road superintendent be in charge of that and they can be the ones that oversee this and follow through.
Commissioner Black asked about the coordination between a road superintendent and the planning commission.
Attorney Edmondson answered that currently there is not any coordination and this is a problem. In the past, they frequently sent people to the county to get an encroachment permit and there are not any written rules or regulations as to what is required in specific situations.
Commissioner Black said that if this ordinance sets the standards, how can we be certain that when a person goes to the planning commission for an encroachment permit that person there notifies the road superintendent so when they come to the county they are prepared? Attorney Edmondson said they will not be able to get their building permits until they have an encroachment permit from the road superintendent.
Commissioner Black then asked what happens if someone does not meet the standard. Attorney Edmondson said they could be made to correct it or even stop work.
Deputy Judge Kimmich said that ideally the way to ensure the culvert pipe is properly installed with proper drainage is when they are given the encroachment permit, they go to area planning and get their house built, but before they get the final occupancy permit from area planning, the Public Works Department would go out, and at the expense of the homebuilder, put the culvert pipe in to county specifications, make sure everything is to grade and then get the occupancy. Mr. Meyer said this is the way the state highway department does it and this is the way the county should do it. The language is in the ordinance that allows this to be done.
Commissioner Humpert asked that if a homeowner stops up a drainage ditch and a neighbor's home gets flooded, what is the worst case scenario and are we culpable?
Attorney Edmondson said the county is not but it gives extra leverage to the property owner who got flooded because somebody covered a drainage ditch.
Commissioner Koenig said it seemed the penalty was fairly light because $500.00 will not fix a road. Attorney Edmondson said this is the maximum a city or county can levy and only the general assembly could change it.
Commissioner Koenig made the motion for passage with Commissioner Humpert's second. The motion unanimously passed upon roll call.
ORDINANCE NO. 225.37-First reading adopting the Kenton County Fiscal Court Budget for FY 2004-05, Ivan Frye reporting: The number has been increased in debt service under the general fund with the anticipation of participating in the KACo program. The other item is in the occupational license fund where the Judge asked the description be changed to treatment programs and left the money in the event that we follow through with what was discussed with Judge Bartlett or anything else in that area that comes up, we will have a line item to use.
Commissioner Koenig made the motion that the budget be approved; seconded by Commissioner Black. The budget was unanimously approved upon roll call.
RESOLUTIONS
There were not any resolutions presented to the court.
EXECUTIVE ORDERS
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 04-36-Reappointment of Anthony Lucas as a member of the Independence Fire District.
Judge Drees asked for a motion of the executive order. Commissioner Black made the motion with Commissioner Koenig's second. Upon roll call vote, the executive order was approved.
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 04-37-Kenton County Fiscal Court to formally dissolve the Kenton County Jail Commission. Commissioner Humpert made the motion; seconded by Commissioner Black. Following roll call, the order was unanimously approved.
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 04-38-Appointment of Tim Bray to serve unexpired term of Lisa Wilson Kattus on the Northern Kentucky Convention & Visitors Commission.
Commissioner Humpert asked why Lisa was stepping down and Deputy Judge Kimmich answered that it was not known and this is the recommendation of the commission to replace her. Commissioner Koenig made the motion for approval with Commissioner Black's second. Approval was given on roll call.
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 04-39-Appointment of Andrea Lear as seasonal maintenance for the Animal Shelter. Commissioner Black made the motion for approval; seconded by Commissioner Koenig. Following roll call, approval was given.
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 04-40-Resignation of Gene Barrett, Mark Wilson, Greg Gavin and Ryan Fitzpatrick as Kenton County Golf Courses seasonal employees. Commissioner Humpert made the statement that these employees had just been hired. Judge Drees asked if they accepted the job. Mr. Shriver answered that two found other employment that paid more and the other two had absentee problems. Commissioner Humpert asked if we would have to hire four more to replace these employees. Mr. Shriver said they would have to be replaced.
Commissioner Humpert made a motion for approval of the resignations with Commissioner Black's second. Approval was granted upon roll call.
CITIZENS ADDRESS
There were no citizens present who wished to address the court.
STAFF REPORTS
Deputy Judge Executive – No comments
Human Resources Director – No report
COUNTY ATTORNEY'S REPORT
No report given
COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS
Commissioner Black – No report
Commissioner Koenig – No report
Commissioner Humpert – Said it was good to see Officer Johnson return from the war and the many fire recruits that graduated. The number of graduates was not expected and this is a good tribute to Ed Burk and others that run the program. He also said he would really like to see the dog park happen and asked if there was one person who was going to work with the project and who the person would be?
Judge Drees answered the person would be Brandon Voelker.
Deputy Judge Kimmich said he would like to make a comment about the county budget. County Treasurer Frye and the Deputy Judge were talking with a member of the press about the county budget that the Judge had approved. Mr. Frye has been working on county budgets for 24 years and Mr. Kimmich has been working with state and county budgets for more than 20 years. This is probably the most difficult we have ever written because we were faced with the situation of static revenue, unexpected cost beyond our control, a growing need to deal with corrections, and a situation where there is no longer the revenue to provide new services, programs, and capital projects. Mr. Kimmich thanked Judge Drees for hanging in there and giving the support that was needed. As cuts were recommended that will not be pleasant for everyone, it is a "tough love" budget and meets the minimum needs of the people of this county, keeps the services ongoing, no department is being abolished or gutted, but vacancies that exist have been eliminated so the employees are asked to do a little more with a little less. It has been a tough budget and Mr. Frye was thanked for the time he had put on it and there will be meeting with department heads over the next few days to go over specifics and the cuts that have been made. The difference between what was approved and what was asked for is approximately $8,000,000 and it is sure that some of our department heads will have some tense moments, but there is confidence the department heads will be able to manage the budget we will present to them in the next few days. Mr. Kimmich further stated he wished to thank Mr. Frye and his staff, Judge Drees for his support, and the Commissioners for their confidence in the budgeting process and their approval.
Commissioner Humpert said the Deputy Judge thanked everyone but himself and he would like to thank him for the hard work he had done on the budget this year.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
There was no executive session.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no other business to come before the court, Judge Drees asked for a motion to adjourn. Commissioner Humpert made the motion with Commissioner Black's second. All voted to adjourn.
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Ralph A. Drees
Kenton County Judge-Executive
ATTEST: _____________________________________
Kenton County Fiscal Court Clerk
