The final 27 of a yearlong total of 361 resolutions comprised the final meeting of the year for the Highland County Board of Commissioners Tuesday.
The normal meeting schedule was changed to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday due to the New Year’s Day holiday on Wednesday, when the meetings are normally held.
Commissioners Gary Abernathy, Jeff Duncan and Terry Britton approved a resolution concerning the appointment of Danielle Rask to the Highland County Law Library Resources Board, with her term expiring on Dec. 31, 2024.
Other resolutions that were approved included a qualified energy project application for certification for Hecate Energy Highland 2, LLC, for the additional 35-megawatt capacity previously reported.
Britton said another resolution in the amount of $240,000 was for the Rocky Fork Lake sewer project, which he said “was the final payment of a 20-year debt that will be paid off.”
A pair of contracts were approved Tuesday, one with attorney Adam King of the Highland County Prosecutor’s Office in association with the Child Support Enforcement Agency (CSEA) Administrative Hearing Office, and another between Highland County and Jackson County for the housing of inmates.
With the wrap up of business for the 2019 calendar year, commissioners set their sights on the challenges that the new year will bring, with Duncan saying requests for capital improvements in the county will be looked at after the first of the year, in addition to records storage.
“It’s been a good year for the county,” Duncan said. “We’ve got some things to be taken care of in terms of building maintenance, and money was appropriated for records retention, which we also need to look at in the upcoming year.”
Britton said that the amount of hard copy papers dating back to the late 1800s need to be digitized to reduce the records storage burden on the county, and to allow for easier access for both county employees and the general public.
Another item in the new year that always requires constant scrutiny, Abernathy said, is the management of the county budget by the department heads, and he commended them on living and working within their respective budgets.
“We have a group of very good folks who are also very budget conscious,” he said. “And that’s what it takes to run a good business.”
The commissioners will resume their usual meeting schedule after an organizational meeting on Monday, Jan. 13 at 9 a.m., with the first meeting to conduct county business in the new year slated for Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 9 a.m.
Duncan wished everyone in Highland County a bright and prosperous new year, and added the public is always welcome and encouraged to attend the weekly commissioners meetings.
Reach Tim Colliver at 937-402-2571.
