Benton County continues budget discussions

VINTON — Benton County Supervisors spoke with several county agencies last week as work on the budget for the next fiscal year continued.

The Board of Supervisors heard from the Riverview Center, Volunteer Center, Benton County Library Association and the Historical Preservation Board during its Jan. 21 meeting.

Supervisor Ron Tippett said he’d like to see the overall county budget decrease a little. He’d like to give the departments a bottom line. “We have to maintain what we have,” he said.

Also on the agenda were the paving project on 32nd Ave. from Highway 30 to Pete’s Hill Association and a budget amendment for the sheriff’s office.

Riverview Center

Melody Kosobucki, of the Riverview Center, told supervisors that the agency provides immediate and long-term crisis support to people impacted by sexual abuse.

Kosobucki said the organization provide counseling and tries to help people find a path to healing so they can forward with their lives.

Riverview Center provides clothing to hospitals ad collaborates with the sheriff’s office to educate people about how to be safe on the internet.

Volunteer Center

Karey Chase, vice president of community impact for the East-Central United Way, talked with the board about the volunteer center in Benton County. She explained the transportation program, projects providing coats and pillows, the Tree of Sharing and Thanksgiving food packages.

The Volunteer Center has two part-time staff members now. It has office space in Belle Plaine. The Volunteer Center advisory council would like to see the organization serving smaller communities.

Next year the Volunteer Center would like to provide tax preparation help.

Library board

Kelly Henkle, of the Benton County Library Association, talked with supervisors about subscriptions, circulation and programming provided at each library.

Henkle, the Vinton Library Director, sit the Library Association provides library services to member libraries in Belle Plaine, Keystone, Blairstown, Norway, Atkins, Newhall, Shellsburg, Vinton, Van Horne and Garrison.

It also provides library services to Luzerne and rural residents.

The Library Association is asking the county for the same amount of funding as the Association has in the current year.

Historical preservation

Robert Spangler and Phil Borleske, of the Benton County Historical Preservation Commission, said most of that agency’s money goes to training and projects, and the Commission needs office space to do those things.

Tippett said the board would know more about available office space by July 1.

The Commission also discussed the courthouse clock project.

ECICOG

Karen Kurt, executive director of the East Central Iowa Council of Governments, introduced herself to the board. She said her group does a lot of planning for transit, transportation, comprehensive planning for cities, economic development and watershed planning.

ECICOG leverages state and federal resources for the region and provides technical services. The organization promotes regional collaboration.

When a disaster occurs, such as the derecho of 2020, ECICOG will “kick into high gear” and work on recovery, Kurt said. She presented the annual report for projects in the region.

ECICOG works through a 28E agreement with Benton, Linn, Johnson, Jones, Washington and Iowa Counties.

Watershed

Mary Beth Stevenson and Alyssa Comer, of the Watershed Management Authority for the middle Cedar River, asked the board for $5,000 to help fund the agency.

Stevenson and Comer told the Board of Supervisors that the Authority has been in existence for 10 years. It was formed in response to the 2008 floods.

Franklin, Hardin, Butler, Grundy, Marshall, Tama, Black Hawk, Buchanan, Benton and Linn Counties, the towns of Vinton, Traer and Grundy Center, and the cities of Cedar Rapids, Waterloo and Cedar Falls fall in the watershed management region.

The Athority works for common solutions for cities, counties and soil and water conservation districts, the women said. It has done a lot of work in Benton County.

Twenty-six entities have signed with the watershed group. It is looking for a new watershed coordinator.

Paving project

Rik Haendler and Haley McNulty met with the board about the seal coating of 32nd Ave. from Highway 30 to Petes’ Hill Association and road work for the Southern View area.

Supervisors discussed funding for the projects.

Haendler presented a petition and said he and McNutly would like to partner with Benton County to get the project done.

Benton County Engineer Myron Parizek talked about the process for this and the time it takes. Parizek also discussed in which fiscal year the project could begin and what paperwork is needed.

Parizek said a contractor would have to be hired.

Budget amendment

Supervisors set a public hearing for Feb. 4 for an amendment to the sheriff’s budget for this fiscal year.

Sheriff Dave Upah said it appears the department will be short on money for wages. He said the department needs to hire four people and there’s no money to pay them.

The money is not for hiring additional staff, said Upah, but to fill vacancies.

The sheriff’s department will probably need three new vehicles with full gear for the new hires, said Upah.

Auditor Hayley Rippel thought the new vehicles could be paid for using Local Option Sales and Services funds.

The estimated cost for the vehicles, equipment and staff is $1 million. Supervisors also discussed an in-car camera system.

The county will ask for sealed bids for three new vehicles to replace high-mileage vehicles. The new vehicles the county currently has will be used by the new hires.

This led supervisors to discuss the need to increase contract rates for communities in Benton County. The county will send letters to those communities with the new rates that will take effect July 1.

The current hourly rate is $32.50.

In other business, Rippel asked if the service agreement for maintenance of the communications towers will be paid by emergency management or by the county.