Pocahontas Co. Commissioners Appoint 3 County Building Commissioners
The Pocahontas County Commission has recently held two meetings. A Special Session on Friday, June 29th and a Regular Session on Tuesday, July 3rd.
The Special Session was held primarily to clean up unfinished business for the fiscal year which ended on June 30th. In addition to paying invoices that were due by the end of the fiscal year, the Commissioners appointed three members to the County Building Commission as required by state law. Ira Bucky Turner was appointed to a 5-year term; Rusty Felton was appointed to a 4-year term; and Kevin Shaw to a 3-year term. Other year ending business conducted at the Special Session included approvals of the following:
- A contract between MindEase Solutions and the County Commission to provide services to the County Day Report Center for the upcoming year;
- Two memorandums of understanding with the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. One of these was regarding Drug Court at the County Day Report Center and one was regarding the Family Court Facilities;
- A contract with Seneca Health Services regarding their providing medication assisted treatment for the Day Report Center and Drug Court;
- A letter of support for the Region 4 Planning and Development Council’s Regional Broadband Initiative;
- And a Basic Ordering Agreement with Global Science & Technology Inc.
The July 3rd Regular Session included the following:
Joe Emmerth and Mike O’Brien of the Pocahontas County Emergency Management requested that the Commission approve their grant application to Homeland Security in the amount of $5000.00 to be used to purchase a 7 foot by 14 foot box trailer to use as a hazardous materials response trailer. They are currently borrowing a 4 foot by 6 foot trailer from the Health Department which is not large enough to haul the equipment needed at a hazmat cleanup site. The Commissioners approved this grant application.
Melissa Bennett, the County Clerk, asked the Commissioners to approve her establishing employee flex time in her office, which the Commissioners approved pending their receipt of the written policy to be included in the County Personnel Manual. Bennett also met with the Commissioners in closed Executive Session to discuss a personnel matter.
The Commissioners approved a budget revision and resolution regarding the Coal Severance tax since the Commission received $20,000 more than had been estimated when they prepared the budget,
They re-appointed Jason Bauserman to a new five-year term on the Historic Landmarks Commission.
Bob Martin, the Commission’s Counsel, reported that he would be presenting in a future meeting suggested changes to the rules of order the Commission follows regarding conducting Commission Meetings. He said that Courts have overturned ordinances passed by other counties’ commissions because proper Roberts Rules of Order were not followed when passing the ordinances, and he want’s to avoid having that problem here.
Laura Young of the WV Department of Rehabilitation received the Commission’s support for a new program where the Department’s clients can be placed with the Day Report Center and other County agencies for an initial 90-day work adjustment period and then, if they work out OK, to a Job training status where they would work for the county agency but be paid for by the WV Department of Rehabilitation. The County would provide a mentor for that first 90-day period and the Department of Rehabilitation would monitor them. The Commissioners agreed this is a good program to get people back working.
Before ending the meeting, the Commissioners authorized Arborist Ken Beezley, of TreeSources, LLC to trim a dangerous maple tree on the courthouse lawn for $250.00 and to have them visually inspect all the courthouse trees for safety.
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