Harrison County DJFS to share coordinator with Belmont

CADIZ -- The Harrison County commissioners approved several agreements on Oct. 25, including one that will share a resource with another county.

Deb Knight, director of the Harrison County Department of Job and Family Services, discussed an agreement between Belmont County DJFS and her agency. The agreement would allow the counties to share a coordinator for each county's Family Children First Council.

Belmont County DJFS would be responsible for hiring the coordinator.

According to the agreement, the coordinator would spend 75 percent of their time working on Belmont County Family and Children First Council activities and 25 percent on Harrison County Family and Children First Council Activities.

The total annual salary and benefits of the coordinator would cost $85,626.01. According to the agreement, Harrison County DJFS would have to pay $21,406.50 for salary and benefits each year, which is 25 percent of the total salary.

All commissioners present at the meeting voted in favor of the agreement.

The commissioners also unanimously approved an agreement with Granger Construction Co. of Columbus, stating the guaranteed maximum cost for constructing the new adult detention facility.

"This is an amendment to the original agreement we signed (that) just outlines the terms and conditions of the agreement and, most importantly, updates the guaranteed maximum price," Commissioner Dustin Corder explained.

According to the agreement, the maximum price for the project is set at $17,665,211.

"This is a maximum price. This isn't the price. They're guaranteed not to go above that," Corder said.

In 2021, the county received $9.1 million from the state to support the jail project.

The new facility will be located at 978 E. Market St. in Cadiz behind the sheriff's department at the former SSG George J. Conaway U.S. Army Reserve Center property. The groundbreaking for the facility was on Aug. 17. The project will include a 22,000-square-foot addition plus renovations to existing facilities.

Corder said no date has been set for construction to be completed.

The commissioners also approved a roadway use and maintenance agreement with Encino Energy.

Encino Energy will have control over 4.7 miles of Ccounty Road 4, or Millers Station Road, in German and Green townships while it is drilling horizontal oil and gas wells. The section of the road begins at its intersection with U.S. Route 22 and proceeds 4.7 miles north to the intersection of Toker Road, or township Road 164.

The oil and gas company will be required to keep the road in good repair during the project.

"It's a pretty standard agreement," Corder said.

All commissioners present voted to approve the agreement.

The commissioners also unanimously voted to approve a voucher of $33,325.33 for the Department of Job and Family Services to pay county bills.

Commissioner Paul Coffland was absent from the meeting.