A week after receiving news that the county’s property and liability insurance increase for this fiscal year is smaller than expected, the Greene County supervisors heard that the increase in the cost of the health insurance provided to county employees will also not see a large increase at renewal time.
The supervisors received a mid-year report from Ryan Berven of Assured Partners, the company that administers the county’s self-funded health plan, with Wellmark providing coverage. With the self-funded plan, the county pays approved medical costs from a reserve fund. Berven told the supervisors that there’s been “pretty good progress” in building the reserve fund, with actual claims well under expected claims. The reserve fund is now at $1.6 million, compared to $1.2 million last October.
“If this holds true, I expect a really good renewal for next year,” Berven said.
Berven reported that although projections place a premium increase from Wellmark at 6 percent, the projected increase for Greene County will be 2.5 percent.
The only other item of business on the supervisors’ agenda was approval of the June 30, 2023 cash count.
As is the case in many supervisor meetings, the “meat” of the meeting was in the “reports” portion of the meeting, not items on the agenda.
County zoning official Chuck Wenthold reminded the supervisors of the board of adjustment’s public hearing (July 6, 5 pm, third floor of the courthouse) on a conditional use permit for National Grid Renewable’s Grand Junction Solar project, and on a conditional use permit to allow Hardin Hilltop Wind to replace its substation.
Wenthold and supervisor Dan Benitz both said they had reached out to other officials to determine the difference in property tax revenue from the Junction Township property involved in the NGR project if it were taken out of agricultural production and put into energy production. Benitz said he was still unsure how it will “shake out.”
Wenthold reminded Benitz that a question of property tax revenue should not be a basis for the board of adjustment’s decision.
“As near as I can figure, it’s not a punishment for the county as far as taxes,” board chair John Muir said.
“This isn’t the first solar project ever,” supervisor Dawn Rudolph said. “If it was detrimental to the tax base wherever they’re at, I’m sure there would be a push back.”
Jefferson city administrator Scott Peterson attended the meeting to introduce himself to the supervisors. He told the supervisors he has heard “nothing but great things about the relations between the city and the county” and he hopes to continue that. He plans to attend a supervisors’ meeting monthly to update them on city business.
City attorney Thomas Laehn took advantage of the opportunity to talk with Peterson about the status of county funding for the city-owned Greene County Animal Shelter. Laehn told Peterson that “a couple of years ago” there had been conversation and that he and then city attorney Bob Schwarzkopf had drafted a 28E agreement for Jefferson and all towns in the county. The agreement was not finalized. At this time he sees it as the city’s burden to pursue finalizing the agreement with the county and other towns
“It sounds like it needs to be a higher priority for me,” Peterson said
Laehn also told the supervisors the Bell Tower Community Foundation has asked about having colored lights illuminating the sides of the Mahanay tower at times other than holidays. He suggested the supervisors could approve a resolution directing the county auditor to select colors at random.
The current policy dealing with lighting on the courthouse directs the auditor to select “appropriate” colors for holidays. Otherwise, the light is to be white. A resolution giving the auditor authority to use random-colored lights on the bell tower would eliminate the ability of the public to request particular colors at particular times. Any perception of a color on the bell tower having a particular meaning would be coincidental.
“I’m not worried if it’s truly random and it (the color) happens to coincide with something,” Laehn said.
Regarding the new Jefferson Chimes, an original short tune intended to call people to the downtown square, Laehn said he’s concerned about how the decision would be made of what events merited playing the special fanfare. “You can’t delegate that to the foundation because you’re letting an outside group (make a decision),” Laehn said.
He said he’s concerned about picking what events would be announced with the Jefferson Chimes. “If I have a birthday party on the courthouse grounds, do I get to play the chimes? Once you open it up, you can’t say ‘no’. So, again, if the neo Nazis want to have a cross burning on the grounds, if you’ve allowed people to do that, the Jefferson Chimes might be hijacked for a purpose you find offensive.”
Rudolph said she’s glad people come up with new ideas, like the Bell Tower Foundation holding a contest to solicit an original composition, “but sometimes we get caught where it’s not completely thought through, and now here we are. It may not be what they wanted when they suggested their idea,” Rudolph said.
Laehn said the immediate solution would be to allow the Jefferson Chimes any time there’s an event officially sponsored by the Greene County board of supervisors or Greene County. Organizations like the Bell Tower Festival steering committee could request the county sponsor an event so the chimes could be played. Having permission to use the courthouse grounds would not be the same as the county sponsoring an event.
Benitz said needing sponsorship of an event in order for the Chimes to be played would “create some issues we don’t need to be in the middle of.”
Laehn reminded the supervisors that the county owns the bell tower, and because the piece is the “Jefferson Chimes,” use of the Chimes would be a call to a city event, not a county-wide event. “It’s complicated,” he said.
Peg Raney, Mahanay Bell Tower music director, had briefed the supervisors on their plans for the Jefferson Chimes at their May 8 meeting. The supervisors didn’t question the plan and the contest was announced. Jennifer Powers’ short composition was selected and it was premiered at the opening ceremony of the Bell Tower Festival in June.
Supervisor Pete Bardole, who serves ex officio on the Bell Tower Community Foundation board, was not at the meeting. No decision was made.
