~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline
At the regular meeting on Jan 13, county attorney Thomas Laehn informed the Greene County board of supervisors he will impanel a grand jury in February to serve through calendar year 2020. Grand juries are charged with hearing information presented to them by the county attorney and returning indictments for crimes if the information supports that.
The third and final reading of the proposed vicious animals ordinance resulted in unanimous acceptance by the board. The category of “dangerous animals” was deleted from the original proposed ordinance and language was added to cover vicious animals owned by multiple owners.
“The sheriff must get consent of every owner before euthanizing an animal,” Laehn said. “A non-consenting owner can be charged with the cost of maintaining the animal (during the appeal to the board of supervisors.)”
The approved ordinance will go into effect after publication and can be viewed in the auditor’s office.
Jefferson city administrator Mike Palmer reported on the status of construction and repair to city-owned buildings around the square. Heartland Bank still has a move-in target date of Feb 1. Work is being started in the AirTemp building and the CompuSense building is next. The building behind Angie’s Tea Garden needs roof work and bids are needed. Work on the former Pizza Ranch building continues.
There are plans to connect the alley behind city hall to Arch Alley and provide parking for shoppers. Improvements to the east entry to the city continue to be discussed as does the path to Greenewood Road on south Highway 4.
The board of supervisors presided at two public hearings during their regular meeting. The first was on a proposed amendment to the FY20 budget. The board unanimously approved appropriation of funds to cover amended expenditure categories.
The second public hearing resulted in approval of Resolution 2020-06: Resolution Authorizing Sale of Property Located at 701 Grant Street, Scranton. No one spoke either for or against the sale. The property was sold to the city of Scranton for $500 and acceptance of the property’s unpaid taxes and assessments.
The board heard a budget request for FY21 from Marcia Tasler, county recorder. She reported revenues of nearly $75,000 and requested $152,600, an increase of $5,425. The increase was due to salary and benefits and telecommunication services. No action was taken by the board.
Human Services located in Carroll emailed a budget for the Greene County office located in Jefferson. Social work services originate in Carroll but an office is maintained in the courthouse here. Revenue was estimated at $9,000 for FY21 and expenses were estimated at $5,500, a decrease of $500 from FY20. No action was taken by the board.
