Board discusses Community Services director position

     Community Services Director Deb Schultz formally presented the Jones County supervisors with letters of resignation from two case managers during the March 21 board meeting.

     The board previously questioned Schultz about what Community Services would look like with the loss of case management, as well as how the director job would change with the hiring of a new director. (Schultz is retiring at the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2016.)

     “No one can see into the future,” Schultz said.

     She said some of the main responsibilities would include General Assistance; substance abuse; mental health administration; representing Jones County on the MHDS (mental health disabilities services) region; HIPAA Privacy Officer for the county; prepare/monitor the department budget; oversee staff for ECI (Early Childhood Iowa), Decat (Decategorization), and CPPC (Community Partnerships for Protecting Children); as well as other duties that arise.

     Schultz said of the director’s responsibilities are solely funded by Jones County, others through the region.

     “After July 1,” stipulated Schultz, “I still anticipate targeted case management.” Basically, there will be some case management cases that will not be absorbed by the state’s MCOs (managed care organizations).

     “As staff leave, we’ll shift the case load as needed,” she informed the board. “If we no longer have a sufficient case load, we can let the case management go.”

     Schultz said she still sees the director job as a full-time position, with time being divided between the region, general assistance, and targeted case management.

     “We’ll be going from seven to three people in the office,” she said upon her retirement. “We’ll need to cover the office to the public has access.”

     At the close of the meeting, the board entered a closed session by the request of the applicant being interviewed for the Community Services Director position. No further formal action was taken.

In other county business:

     • The board approved a request from the Wapsipinicon Trail Committee to submit a $100,000 grant application to Wellmark for the trail project. Committee member and Economic Development Director Dusty Embree said they already received one Wellmark grant in the amount of $25,000 to go toward engineering. If successful this time around, the grant money would go toward construction for phase one of the trail project.

     So far, Embree shared that $560,000 has been raised of the $794,000 just for construction of phase one (that does not include engineering costs).

     “We’re making progress,” Embree said.

• Dan Lambertsen, County Road E-45, was present at the meeting to discuss issues he’s been having with his entrance since the road project was completed. Lambertsen said what was a flat approach is now a steep climb for getting in and out of his drive. He asked the county and County Engineer to either put more rock out to flatten the slope or flatten it out by scraping some material away.

     “I need to approachable for semis to get in and out,” said Lambertsen.

     County Engineer Derek Snead said after a road project, it is the landowners’ responsibility to maintain their accesses.

     Supervisor Jon Zirkelbach asked if Secondary Roads could put some spot rock out to fix Lambertsen’s issue.

     “If that’s what the board wants done,” said Snead.

     “If we do rock for one, we have to do it for all,” commented Supervisor Joe Oswald. “It makes more sense to scrap it away.”

     Lambertsen said, “A couple loads of rock and a grader would not cost the county a lot of money.”