The regular meeting of the Niobrara County Commissioners commenced on October 1, 2024, at 9:05 a.m. Present were Chairman Patrick H. Wade, Vice-Chairman John Midkiff, and Commissioner Elaine Griffith. Also present were County Clerk Becky L. Freeman and Sheriff Randy Starkey, and Brandie Collins, of The Lusk Herald.
Road & Bridge- Foreman Fred Thomas updated the Commissioners on road and bridge matters.
He said that all auto-gates for the 2024 Road Rehabilitation Project have been installed. He noted that the contractor who installed the new auto gates wanted to buy the used ones to resell them, but Mr. Thomas said he would prefer to keep them in his inventory and sell them to local landowners should any be requested.
He said they did spot graveling on N. Lance Creek Road and are moving to Meridian Road. He said after that, the plan is to move back to N. Lance Creek Road.
He also reviewed a Permit to Cross a County Road submitted by Wade Cattle Company to bore under a portion of Hat Creek Road to install a 2” waterline for cattle. He said it is in order.
BenchMark of Torrington- Brian Wakefield of Benchmark of Torrington joined the meeting to discuss the 2024 Road Rehabilitation Project. Mr. Thomas said there may need to be more gravel placed on certain areas of Cheyenne River Road.
County Attorney- Attorney Anne Wasserburger met with the Commissioners and discussed contracts. She said the IT contract with Converse County can move forward as long as her requested changes are made.
There was nothing new to report on the Community Juvenile Services program. They are still looking for a part-time coordinator to manage the program in Niobrara County to work with local youths.
Elected Officials and Department Heads- Sheriff Randy Starkey said his office has been busy. He noted that the dispatch and detention departments have positions open, and detention is currently housing two state inmates.
Clerk of Court Chrisanna Lund said the Judicial District is moving to e-filing. Attorneys can begin filing on October 15th with mandatory e-filings beginning on January 1st. After January 1st, no paper documents can be filed. She noted it will change the face of day-to-day work in her office.
4-H Youth Educator Kellie Chichester said it is the start of a new 4-H year. She noted that October 13th is 4-H Achievement Day and invited the Commissioners to attend if they were able.
Commissioner Griffith thanked everyone for their help with hazardous materials collections.
Lease Agreement- Vice-Chairman Midkiff moved to approve the lease agreement between Double A Properties, LLC., and Niobrara County for rent for the premises the lessor provides as office space for the County Attorney’s Office. Commissioner Griffith seconded, and the motion carried.
Snow Removal- Vice-Chairman Midkiff said he spoke with Mike Mayville regarding snow removal and Mr. Mayville said he was interested.
Memorandum of Understanding for Juvenile Detention Services- Commissioner Griffith moved to enter an MOU between Campbell County and Niobrara County for Juvenile Detention Services. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Sheriff- Sheriff Starkey presented a request to add an additional sergeant position in detention. The addition of this position would ensure that there were two 1st line supervisors there every day to manage day to day duties. This would be someone already employed in detention with the increase of salary being nominal. Commissioner Griffith moved to approve the request to add an additional sergeant position in detention. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Petition to Cross County Roads- Commissioner Griffith moved to approve the petition for Wade Cattle Company to cross under Hat Creek Road to install a 2” waterline for cattle. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Consent Agenda- Commissioner Griffith moved to approve the consent agenda. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried. Items on the consent agenda were the minutes of the September 17, 2024, meeting.
Justin Lane and Chris Caskey, Technical Services with Converse County IT, met with the Commissioners and Assessor Teri Stephens to discuss them providing IT services for the County Assessor’s Office. Treasurer Keri Thompson was also present.
Mr. Caskey said they are Converse County employees for the Converse Technical Service Group. He said they currently support 150 end users across four main campuses, including Converse County Government, the Town of Glenrock and the City of Douglas, and have a total staff of five members.
He said the contract they have with the City of Douglas is like services they would provide here.
Commissioner Griffith moved to enter into an agreement for technical services between Converse County and Niobrara County contingent upon language updates requested by the County Attorney. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Payroll and the following vouchers were approved for payment:
There being no further business, Commissioner Griffith moved to adjourn the meeting at 2:51 p.m. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
NIOBRARA COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Patrick Wade, Chairman
Attest:
Becky L. Freeman, County Clerk
Bills are listed in the following format: Vendor- Department- Description- Amount- September Payroll- $144,566.17, 3 Sister’s Truck Stop- Road & Bridge- Fuel- $115.46, Aflac- Various- Supplemental insurance- $8,333.06, Alsco- Various- Supplies, shop towels & coveralls- $311.64, Anne Wasserburger- Various- Supplies- $516.20, Becky L. Freeman- Elections- Travel expense, training- $846.88, BenchMark of Torrington- Various- Gravel stockpile measurements & 2024 Road Rehab Project engineering fees, Land Use Plan Update- $5,181.64, Benzel Pest Control- Justice Center- Pest control- $97.92, Black Hills Chemical & Janitorial- Various- Supplies- $680.96, Black Hills Energy- Various- Utilities- $307.07, Canon Financial Services- General County- Copier Service Agreements- $330.00, Casper Medical Imaging, PC- Detention- Inmate medical- $172.93, CenturyLink- Various- Telephones- $1,342.16, CenturyLink Business Services- Various- Telephones- $66.21, Community Hospital- Detention- Inmate medical- $581.00, Connecting Point Computer Centers- Various- Copier service agreements - $187.46, Cory Wilcox- Coroner- Deputy coroner stipend- $150.00, Decker’s Market- Detention- Inmate medical- $6.08, Delta Dental of WY- Various- Dental insurance- $898.90, Dennis C. Meier- Circuit Court Magistrate- Office rent- $1,000.00, Double A Properties, LLC.- Various- Office rent- $1,500.00, Election Systems & Software, Inc.- Elections- Ballots- $404.13, Empower Trust Company, LLC.- General Co.- Deferred Compensation- $20,980.00, Floyd’s Truck Center, Inc.- Road & Bridge- Parts- $359.98, Frank Parts Co.- Road & Bridge- Parts- $116.44, Fusion Cloud Services- Various- Telephones- $1,186.25, Geographic Innovations- Various- Professional mapping services- $1,500.00, GreatAmerica Financial Services- Sheriff- Copier service agreement- $103.00, Hiway Brake & Alignment- Sheriff- Vehicle repairs- $2,307.54, Intab- Elections- Supplies- $341.71, Jameson Cleaning & Maintenance- Facilities- Fairgrounds cleaning contract, library maintenance, fairgrounds event booking contract- $8,735.00, Jub Jub, Inc.- General County- IT expense- $220.00, Kassidy Miller- Prevention Grant- IT expense- $40.00, Ken Brown- Clerk of Court- Court appointed attorney fees- $528.00, Keri Thompson- General County- Postage- $5.95, Lexie Painter- Extension- Contract labor- fair board bookkeeping- $600.00, Lusk Herald- General County- Publications- $1,450.04, Lusk State Bank- General Co.- Payroll taxes- $41,829.10, Madison Rut- Detention- Inmate medical- $600.00, Medico-Mart, Inc.- Public Health- Vaccines- $178.11, Michael Harberts- General County- IT expense- $805.00, Michelle Kremers- Various- Travel, TANF grant, Supplies- $341.65, supplies- Miller Construction- Facilities- Road & Bridge shop improvements, library maintenance- $15,885.00, NCIC Inmate Communications- Detention- NCIC Tablets- $276.65, Niobrara County Hospital District-1% Option Tax - $28,082.25, Niobrara County Library- Deferred compensation reimbursement- $1,875.00, Niobrara County Public Health- Prevention Grant- Grant admin.- $291.33, Niobrara Electric Association- Various- Radio tower electricity- $58.10, Olson Tire Co.- Sheriff- Tires- $1,904.30, PowerPhone- Dispatch- Computer expense- $2,945.80, Randy Starkey- Sheriff- Travel expense- $458.09, Rawhide Drug Co.- Detention- Inmate medical- $482.35, Sanofi Pasture- Public Health- Vaccines- $3,211.90, Skeeter Construction- Facilities- Library & Road & Bridge maintenance- $462.75, Swanson Services Corp.- Detention- Inmate commissary account- $551.50, The Master’s Touch- Treasurer- Mailing service- $317.43, Thomson Reuters-West- County Attorney- Law library- $194.75, Torrington Office Supply- Various- Supplies- $262.74, Town of Lusk- Various- Utilities- $3,143.96, Tyler Technologies- Various- IT expense, computer software- $4527.69, USPS- General County- Postage for CH postage meter- $7,250.00, Verizon Wireless- Various- Phones, base charge $434.05, Visa- Various- Supplies, travel expense, postage, new equipment, computer expense, IT expense, TANF grant, inmate medical, schools, maintenance, fuel - $6,304.20, Vision Service Plan- Various- Vision Insurance- $404.77, Visionary Broadband- Various- IT expense- $469.14, Westco- Road & Bridge- Fuel- $6,242.30, Whetsell Carpentry, LLC.- County Road Fund- 24 Road Rehab pay request #2- $8,961.88, WY Enterprise Technology- Various- Computer expense- $245.70, WYDOT- Financial Services- Sheriff- Fuel- $1,983.77, Wyoming Dept. of Transportation- Motor Vehicle Services- Road & Bridge- License plate transfer- $4.00, Wyoming Educators’ Benefit Trust- Co Admin- Health & life insurance- $27,577.03, Wyoming Lawn Sprinklers- Facilities- Library maintenance- $154.30, Wyoming Machinery Company- Road & Bridge- Parts, equipment repairs- $1,478.98, Wyoming Network, Inc.- General County- IT expense- $200.00, Wyoming Women’s Center- Detention- Inmate Meals- $2,441.15, Xerox Corp.- Co admin- Copier service agreement- $132.48, September Total- $379,038.98.
Public Notice No. 6156. Published in The Lusk Herald on October 23, 2024.
