Commission - Regular Meeting

0:06•DHDan Huls

Good morning, all. I will call the Monday, October 5th Board of County Commissioners meeting to order. Chris, will you do a roll call, please?

0:20 – 1:11•DHDan Huls

I'm here. Jeff, will you lead us in the pledge this morning? Thank you, Jeff. You're welcome. Public comment for those participating via Granicus, you may call 406-375-6513 in order to provide your public comment. And we have a department head evaluation this morning. And environmental health and closed door may be invoked for MCA 23-203. John, would you like to invoke closed door? Yes, please. Thank you.

1:22 – 1:38•DHDan Huls

Okay, thank you. We have concluded our department head evaluation for environmental health. No commission action was taken during our closed-door session. Next item on our agenda is update on West House, and that will be at 10 a.m. So we'll pause until then.

1:54 – 2:14•DHDan Huls

Thank you. Good afternoon, good morning, all. It's not afternoon yet, I guess. We are here to have an update on the West House with a discussion and possible decision on West House supervisor job description and posting for that position. Bill and Madison, welcome.

We put this position out, we advertise two weeks, hire a director. What do we think is a realistic timeframe for Westhouse being open for business?

7:34•DHDan Huls

Have you looked at the facility itself and do we need to do any upgrades physically or structurally to that at this point?

8:33•DHDan Huls

It's my thought that if there are needs, that we do them before we open instead of trying to work around patients that are in there.

And who gets licensed? So like when we had prior entities running it, is it the entity that gets licensed or the house itself? How does that?

10:13•DHDan Huls

So the county will become the provider then?

11:06•DHDan Huls

So the county's responsibility will be mainly the facility itself?

overarching responsibility i suppose to make sure that the medical director is in place and that you know those sort of things the structures there i mean we have that stroke but this is a whole different model from subcontract to an entity to we now this is a department basically of the county where we're going to have a director and employees and staff to what level we can subcontract i guess is yet to be as far as these The director, obviously, the medical director, probably not a county employee. Correct. The mental health providers, maybe, maybe not.

So the job description that's in front of us is a little bit incomplete, it looks like.

So supervisory's a new section you added?

Did you tie maintenance in to see what their ability with their current staffing level would be to take this on? Because I think like West House, when they did, they had a dedicated maintenance person right there. No. No, they didn't. It's always been our responsibility. Because I heard about the maintenance person from... Western are aware and I didn't know what they were doing over there. I just when I talked to Nick he said I have to talk to Their maintenance, so I don't know what they were doing.

15:09•DHDan Huls

Western did not have, I don't believe anybody.

15:42•DHDan Huls

We've always done the physical work over there.

16:59•DHDan Huls

that we would pay the power bill and that would be part of what we do. I agree.

17:29•DHDan Huls

I believe so, yes. The sooner the better.

There's probably gas over there too in Northwestern.

So one of the big things we talked about when we were first setting this up was this ability to build back to Medicaid? Medicaid, correct. I don't see that in here, unless that's implied somewhat. Like, if that's a key, and I don't see it. There it is. Is there a page two to this? There's page four. Yes, there is. Two, three, four. Did you find the other pages? It's right in front of me. Oh, and the next page is below? I thought we gave you all the pages, Joe.

20:12 – 21:01•DHDan Huls

Well it's, we have to go into this endeavor with our eyes wide open as far as reimbursement from Medicaid and the struggles that Western Montana Mental Health had with that and I'm sure AWARE is aware of that. And so we need to realize that that's gonna be a challenge because it has been for those other organizations that have done this in multiple cities throughout the state of Montana. And they've struggled, and frankly, their organization has failed and closed because of that problem. So, largely. Yeah. So, we need to be aware of that.

Is there a software licensing for medical records of these folks? Is there a... Like I know hospitals keep medical records and there's all sorts of HIPAA stuff. Is this similar where patients of West House were tracking information in a database and were responsible for medical or records?

Are we keeping track? Because I remember when we first talked, we had that cost sheet that was running, and Bill said we're going to make a whole bunch of money for the county through taking this over. How has that changed since we started? Just as you've learned stuff, like adding things like that, like, oh, we need a patient medical records tracking software, or has that changed much since you started down there?

Mr. Chairman, I move to approve the creation of the West House administrator. and to post the job description as soon as we've got it finalized.

23:36 – 23:53•DHDan Huls

I will second that motion. It's been moved and seconded to approve the West House administrator job description and to post until filled. Is there any public comment on that motion?

24:52 – 25:03•DHDan Huls

Anyone else? Call for the question. Jeff? Aye. And I vote aye as well. Motion carries. We're on the road.

25:22 – 25:37•DHDan Huls

Yeah, okay, we'll just flow. We will reconvene with review and decision of contracts for services and insurance requirements.

25:40•DHDan Huls

Okay, we have a Ricketts Road payment request.

25:53•DHDan Huls

Jonathan and John are here. and the payment request is in.

Mr. Chair, I move to approve pay request number five to Knife River for $415,902.96 and net gross receipts tax pay at $4,201.05.

26:41 – 27:05•DHDan Huls

And I will second that motion. It's been moved and seconded to pay the pay request number five for Knife River in the amount of $415,902.96 with a payment to the Montana State Fund, 4,201.05. Is there any public comment on that motion?

That's a big question. This is two miles, and this is a third payment contract. If you contract it through federal funds, a million. If you do it. On our end, I mean, what could we average? A couple hundred thousand?

And you guys did a nice rock wall with basket along part of it. That looked good. That's beautiful. He was on his own for that. Hell.

28:09 – 28:52•DHDan Huls

Any public comment? Further discussion? Call for the question, Jeff. Aye. And I vote aye as well. Motion carries. And with that, we will recess until 1 PM. And we will have an opportunity for public comment on subdivision exemptions. OK. We will reconvene with opportunities for the public to comment on subdivision exemption applications Thank you, commissioners.

on making sure they have room access. Yeah, we have no idea.

30:30 – 30:42•DHDan Huls

We're offering public comment on an action that is exempt from review. This is a chance for people to speak up.

But not exempt from evasion criteria, right, Rob? That's right.

30:53•DHDan Huls

Okay, hearing no public comment on the de quattro, we will move on.

31:36 – 31:51•DHDan Huls

Okay, is there any public comment on the Lyons family transfer? Hearing none, we will move on.

33:02 – 33:15•DHDan Huls

OK. Is there any public comment on the HACI? Boundary line relocation and family transfer. OK. The next is the Creech Trust.

34:18 – 34:35•DHDan Huls

Okay. Is there any public comment on the Creech boundary line relocation? Hearing none, we will move on to Newberry.

Dequatro, it's the owner and they're the consultant?

So it's just, yeah, I'm just saying, it's just a homeowner who submitted this stuff themselves. Where's Sage Hill at? I was looking for it. I was just interested to see that. Oh, parcel 44, let's see. I don't think you can search good astral black. What's the address? Do you know?

Can you pull up the Yeah, so if you look at the access on that, the access is along the bottom.

Potentially, if they don't get an easement through the other properties.

36:54•DHDan Huls

Certificate of survey and survey the easement.

Yeah, that's the problem is you just have no idea what the plan is for accident.

37:21•DHDan Huls

Well, if they sell the top right lot first and there's no access, there's no access.

So you don't know how far that distance is between – so right now, right where it says rebar, there's basically a road that goes north to serve a house, Sage Hill Drive. Then you don't know how far that distance is, so whether they meet – separation and sight distance and all that stuff so then they may have to share sage hill but then they're like our septic systems in the way of being able to drive around and get to or we've landscaped at all we don't want to tear it up so so they could Yeah, I mean, they would get the exempt well allowance for it, but you'd have to split the exempt well all

That's a good example of dividing lots away from the access road. Are they going to grant easements across there? Are they going to expect a separate approach for all those three lots? Are they going to use Sage Hill Drive to get to all those lots? Probably not.

Looks like it's already named Sage, or if they had a new one.

40:19•DHDan Huls

In reality. It's just we don't want to create more.

From Sage Hill. Go from the intersection of Sage Hill to like right about here. Just start at Sage Hill, right at that intersection. Oh, you drew it that way. So it would meet.

So it would meet separation down there, but does it go up or down? You just don't know. To the other corner, to where the other road is. Just spin your mouse in circles. That'll be fine.

41:30 – 41:47•DHDan Huls

So that appears to be a gully there or just where those light spots are? There's a creek through there, so it looks like topographic. It's hard to tell how deep that is or how steep. It looks like a bluff right there that kind of steps up and goes.

43:05 – 43:25•DHDan Huls

At 2 o'clock. So we will pause until 2 o'clock. Kate, good afternoon, everyone. We will reconvene with a review and a possible decision on the Bob Lewis Ranch Phase 5.

Mr. Chairman, we have to approve the Bob Lewis conservation easement final documentation that requested $345,000 to Flying S, Title, and Escrow Montana to distribute to Bob Lewis and Monica Lewis for the conservation easement and project-related costs.

45:43•DHDan Huls

Thank you, Jeff. And I will second that motion. It's been moved and seconded.

45:55 – 46:15•DHDan Huls

Okay. It has been moved and seconded to approve Resolution 4816, approving the Bob Lewis Ranch Phase 5. Is there any public comment on that motion? Yep. You got it.

Don't thank us for the vote yet. We haven't voted yet. I just made a motion.

47:40 – 48:56•DHDan Huls

He just made a motion. All right. Is there any further public comment? Is there any further discussion? Call for the question, Jeff. Aye. And I vote aye as well. Motion carries. Thank you. Thank you, guys. And congratulations. We will sign Resolution 4816. Yes. Yes, got it. All right. And with that, is there any public comment on items not otherwise on our agenda?