Board of DD elects new officers
By
Brandy Chandler-brandychandler@gmail.com
The Highland County Board of Developmental Disabilities elected officers Tuesday, during their regular monthly meeting held at Hills and Dales Training Center.
Linda Allen was once again elected as board president, while Sam Snyder was elected vice president, and Debbie Tissot was elected secretary. All three votes for officers were unanimous of board members present.
The three officers and board member Karen Adams were the only board members present, and interim superintendent Fred Williams noted that the board was anticipating appointments from the Highland County Board of Commissioners.
During a special meeting held earlier this month, Williams said that board member John Fittro had submitted his resignation and that board member Megan Filson had notified them of her intent to resign.
Board member Gary Buchanan was not in attendance Tuesday, and Williams had previously said that Buchanan had more absences than board policy permits.
"I have been in contact with the commissioners," Williams said. "I've spoken to five to six individuals in various states of interest (in becoming a board member). The commissioners did run a notice in the newspaper soliciting if people were interested. I have informed them that time is of the essence. It is critical that we have three new members, and the commissioners said they would be in touch."
Members of the Board of DD are appointed by either the Highland County Board of Commissioners or the Highland County Juvenile and Probate Court judge. Commissioner Tom Horst told The Highland County Press Tuesday that it was their current belief that the commissioners would be making all three of the current pending appointments.
Operations manager Tim Clouser reported to the board that there are several projects under way at the facility.
The board voted 4-0 to approve proceeding with the installation of a new heating, air conditioning, ventilation and fire suppression system. Williams said the project had already received approval from the county commissioners.
Clouser said the project would be completed at "state minimum pricing" and would be between $225,000 and $250,000. Engineers for the project have already looked at the facility and said that when it was constructed in the 1970s, "the engineer set it up for upgrades."
Allen said that in the summer months the building is "very uncomfortable" for clients. Tissot and Adams noted that they were particularly concerned that there is no fire suppression system.
"To me, fire would be the big issue when it comes to clients," Adams said.
Clouser said that there was also a likelihood that the new systems will be more efficient, with an estimated savings on utility bills of more than $12,000 over a two-year period.
[[In-content Ad]]Business manager Lori Moore said the project money would come from contingency and sustainability funds.
Clouser said that they have also explored leasing an office property to house the SSAs (Service and Support Administrators). Programs at the Hills and Dales facility, located on U.S. 50 east, are expanding, and there is little space for growth. Clouser said that a few office spaces in Hillsboro have been considered, but they are seriously considering one property in the 900 block of West Main Street.
Williams said that they were not asking for board action on the additional office space, but "in the interest of transparency, we wanted to bring it up. Even though the SSAs are county board employees, their world is a lot broader than Hills and Dales."
Clouser said that the space they are looking at would cost approximately $1,575 per month, with the price decreasing by signing a three-year ($1,170 per month) or five-year ($990 per month) lease. New construction at Hills and Dales would cost between $15,000 and $30,000, he said.
In other business:
• Also in the facilities reporter, Clouser said that they were currently conducting a study of flow of water in and out of the facility after learning that there were issues with the septic system. The study must be conducted for a three-month period, and a detailed report will be given during the April meeting. However, Williams said that there are currently no risks posed with the current situation.
Clouser also reported good news, in that Hills and Dales transportation runs as roughly half of the average cost of boards of DDs statewide.
• During the finance report, Moore told the board that, "We will really have to watch our expenses this year, and cut back where we can. Money is tight."
• Williams said that a team from the Ohio Association of County Boards of DD conducted an informal study of systems an efficiency to look for areas that could be improved. While a formal report has not yet been issued, Williams said they were complimentary of staff, but some suggestions have been made for improving some system efficiency and making certain programming for clients "non-monotonous and getting them out in the community. The staff already has a lot of ideas."
• Williams said that he was interviewed by The Columbus Dispatch for a feature article that looks into county boards that are sharing services. Williams is also the Fayette County Board of DD superintendent, and since he started at Hills and Dales in October, he has brought over a few other staff members from Fayette County to share services with Highland.
"I continue to be pleased with the work that is done here, and I am enjoying it," Williams said. "We are setting new standards. (Hills and Dales) has been a well-kept secret, and it's my job to tell the story - starting here (in Highland County) and across the state - about the good work people are doing here with developmental disabilities."
Linda Allen was once again elected as board president, while Sam Snyder was elected vice president, and Debbie Tissot was elected secretary. All three votes for officers were unanimous of board members present.
The three officers and board member Karen Adams were the only board members present, and interim superintendent Fred Williams noted that the board was anticipating appointments from the Highland County Board of Commissioners.
During a special meeting held earlier this month, Williams said that board member John Fittro had submitted his resignation and that board member Megan Filson had notified them of her intent to resign.
Board member Gary Buchanan was not in attendance Tuesday, and Williams had previously said that Buchanan had more absences than board policy permits.
"I have been in contact with the commissioners," Williams said. "I've spoken to five to six individuals in various states of interest (in becoming a board member). The commissioners did run a notice in the newspaper soliciting if people were interested. I have informed them that time is of the essence. It is critical that we have three new members, and the commissioners said they would be in touch."
Members of the Board of DD are appointed by either the Highland County Board of Commissioners or the Highland County Juvenile and Probate Court judge. Commissioner Tom Horst told The Highland County Press Tuesday that it was their current belief that the commissioners would be making all three of the current pending appointments.
Operations manager Tim Clouser reported to the board that there are several projects under way at the facility.
The board voted 4-0 to approve proceeding with the installation of a new heating, air conditioning, ventilation and fire suppression system. Williams said the project had already received approval from the county commissioners.
Clouser said the project would be completed at "state minimum pricing" and would be between $225,000 and $250,000. Engineers for the project have already looked at the facility and said that when it was constructed in the 1970s, "the engineer set it up for upgrades."
Allen said that in the summer months the building is "very uncomfortable" for clients. Tissot and Adams noted that they were particularly concerned that there is no fire suppression system.
"To me, fire would be the big issue when it comes to clients," Adams said.
Clouser said that there was also a likelihood that the new systems will be more efficient, with an estimated savings on utility bills of more than $12,000 over a two-year period.
[[In-content Ad]]Business manager Lori Moore said the project money would come from contingency and sustainability funds.
Clouser said that they have also explored leasing an office property to house the SSAs (Service and Support Administrators). Programs at the Hills and Dales facility, located on U.S. 50 east, are expanding, and there is little space for growth. Clouser said that a few office spaces in Hillsboro have been considered, but they are seriously considering one property in the 900 block of West Main Street.
Williams said that they were not asking for board action on the additional office space, but "in the interest of transparency, we wanted to bring it up. Even though the SSAs are county board employees, their world is a lot broader than Hills and Dales."
Clouser said that the space they are looking at would cost approximately $1,575 per month, with the price decreasing by signing a three-year ($1,170 per month) or five-year ($990 per month) lease. New construction at Hills and Dales would cost between $15,000 and $30,000, he said.
In other business:
• Also in the facilities reporter, Clouser said that they were currently conducting a study of flow of water in and out of the facility after learning that there were issues with the septic system. The study must be conducted for a three-month period, and a detailed report will be given during the April meeting. However, Williams said that there are currently no risks posed with the current situation.
Clouser also reported good news, in that Hills and Dales transportation runs as roughly half of the average cost of boards of DDs statewide.
• During the finance report, Moore told the board that, "We will really have to watch our expenses this year, and cut back where we can. Money is tight."
• Williams said that a team from the Ohio Association of County Boards of DD conducted an informal study of systems an efficiency to look for areas that could be improved. While a formal report has not yet been issued, Williams said they were complimentary of staff, but some suggestions have been made for improving some system efficiency and making certain programming for clients "non-monotonous and getting them out in the community. The staff already has a lot of ideas."
• Williams said that he was interviewed by The Columbus Dispatch for a feature article that looks into county boards that are sharing services. Williams is also the Fayette County Board of DD superintendent, and since he started at Hills and Dales in October, he has brought over a few other staff members from Fayette County to share services with Highland.
"I continue to be pleased with the work that is done here, and I am enjoying it," Williams said. "We are setting new standards. (Hills and Dales) has been a well-kept secret, and it's my job to tell the story - starting here (in Highland County) and across the state - about the good work people are doing here with developmental disabilities."