Each county employee will receive an extra $25 this year.
“I think this is a good thing for the board to do,” said Long. “It gives back a little bit to the employees who have not received a raise in two years, and they work hard, and they work hard for us … It is a token of our appreciation.”
According to Randy Dowling, county administrator, the funds for the bonus will come from the $22,421.90 the county made during the annual surplus auction sale Nov. 6.
The bonus, which will go to part-time and full-time employees, will cost the county approximately $10,000, said Dowling.
The bonuses will be tax-exempt, he said because the the amount is less than $50. The bonuses should be sent out by payroll next Wednesday.
A public hearing was also held during the Nov. 16 meeting concerning amendments to the county’s Unified Land Development Code which was put into effect in 2009.
While no citizens attended the first public hearing on this matter, the board will hold subsequent hearings be-fore voting.
Also during their meeting, the Commissioners:
*Reappointed Ted Collins and Ricky Smith to the Limestone Valley Resource Conservation and Development Council for another two-year term, ending on Dec. 31, 2012.
*Declared a trailer at the Gordon County Sheriff’s Office to be surplus property, thus abandoning all ownership interest. The Pace American trailer was donated to the Calhoun and Gordon County Drug Task Force by a private citizen in 2003 which has since disbanded, according to Hutchinson.
*Approved the creation of an additional county bank account to receive closure fees and post-closure fees separate from host fees for payment by Santek for use of the landfill.
*Accepted their third amendment to their contract with Santek, which originated in 2006. According to Dowling, the county made five changes to the contract.
County Administrator’s report:
*The county is still waiting on approval from Georgia Department of Transportation for pending funding concerning the Fort Wayne project. According to County Administrator Randy Dowling, the county is continuing to supply the state with “a tremendous amount of expensive documentation.” The project should be underway in mid-2011, he said.
*The county hosted a radio consultant to identify with the users of the county-wide radio system and take note of the efficiency of the system. Dowling said the consultant will have a report by early 2011.
*The Courthouse Plaza project is 75 percent of the way to completion, according to Dowling, and should be completed in early December. “So far, that project is going pretty well,” he said.
*Construction on the boat ramp on Ga. 53 is finished and naming should be completed in the coming months.
*The project for the new Tallatoona Community Action Partnership facility is proceeding with a possibly building purchase by week’s end. This new facility is funded by the 2010 Community Development Block Grant awarded to Gordon County earlier this year. This project’s projected completion is late 2011.
*The county is preparing bid speculations for the revamp of the county’s annex parking deck. The project should go to bid early 2011, and the project will begin in March.
*Collection on the 2010 Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax is steady, but lower than last year’s collection.
*The project for the new agricultural center in Calhoun is awaiting contact from the United States Department of Agriculture to move forward with the project.
Amendments to the Santek contract include:
*The county increased their fee for Santek to rent the county’s landfill equipment from $10,000 annually to $25,000 annually.
*If Santek chooses to use the county’s landfill to produce and sell energy of any kind including methane, the county will receive 7.5 percent of the profit. According to Dowling, Santek is discussing using the landfill to extract methane.
*The county currently receives space for two tons of free waste in the landfill to facilitate the disposal of litter, storm debris, etc. The amend-ment added an increase of one percent per year for use by the county.
*The host fees paid by Santek will be increased by up to three percent yearly to reflect inflation. A host fee is a set amount paid to the county by Santeck for use of the county’s landfill.
*Santek will now hold an Amnesty Day in which county citizens can bring appliances, old tire, etc. to the land fill.
*As a side agreement to these amendments, Gordon County doubled their contract with Santek from the previous 20-year term to the newly adopted 40-year contract term. According to Dowling, Santek will be investing millions of dollars into the county’s landfill for methane extraction, and company officials wanted to ensure they would be in Gordon County to reap the benefits.
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