TL Photo/KAILEY CARPINO Deb Knight, director of the Harrison County Department of Employment and Family Services, discussed an agreement between DJFS of Belmont County and DJFS of Harrison County at Wednesday’s Harrison County Board of Commissioners meeting. The agreement will allow the two counties to share a coordinator for each county’s Family and Children’s Council.
CADIZ — The Harrison County Board of Commissioners approved several agreements last week, including one that will share a resource with another county.
Deb Knight, director of the Harrison County Department of Employment and Family Services, discussed an agreement between Belmont County DJFS and her agency. The agreement will allow the two counties to share a coordinator for each county’s Family and Children’s Council.
Belmont County DJFS will be responsible for hiring the coordinator.
Under the agreement, the coordinator will spend 75% of her time on Family and Children First Council activities in Belmont County and 25% on Family and Children First Council activities in Harrison County.
The coordinator’s total annual salary and benefits will be $85,626.01. Under the agreement, DJFS in Harrison County will have to pay $21,406.50 in 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.
Commissioners also unanimously approved an agreement with Granger Construction Co. in Columbus, outlining the guaranteed maximum construction costs for the new adult detention facility.
“This is an amendment to the original agreement that we signed (which) simply 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 $17,665,211.
“This is a maximum price. That’s not the price. They are guaranteed not to exceed that,” Corder said.
In 2021, the county received $9.1 million from the state of Ohio to support the jail project.
The new facility will be located at 978 E. Market St. in Cadiz behind the sheriff’s office at the former SSG George J. Conaway US Army Reserve Center. The first sod of the facility was on August 17. The project will include the addition of 22,000 square feet plus renovations to existing facilities.
Corder said no date has been set for the completion of construction.
Commissioners also approved a road use and maintenance agreement with Encino Energy LLC, an oil and gas company based in Texas.
Encino Energy will control 4.7 miles of County Road 4, or Millers Station Road, in German and Green townships while drilling horizontal oil and gas wells. The stretch of road begins at its intersection with US 22 and continues 4.7 miles north to the intersection of Toker Road or Township Road 164.
The oil and gas company will have to maintain the road in good condition during the project.
“It’s a pretty standard arrangement,” Corder said.
All commissioners present voted to approve the settlement.
Commissioners also voted unanimously to approve a $33,325.33 voucher for the Department of Employment and Family Services to pay county bills.
Commissioner Paul Coffland was absent from the meeting.