Reopening county buildings topic at Dale commission meeting

How to reopen county offices closed since the shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic was discussed at the Dale County Commission meeting held April 28 at the County Ag-Plex arena.

The meeting was the first since the commissioners passed a resolution authorizing the emergency closing of county buildings and operations at a special called meeting March 17.

The emergency resolution authorized Dale County Commission Chairman Mark Blankenship to act on behalf of the county in the state of emergency and established an emergency chain of command that included Commissioner Chris Carroll, County Administrator Cheryl Ganey and County Engineer Derek Brewer.

Two subsequent commission meetings had been cancelled as a precautionary measure as the COVID-19 threat increased.

At the April 28 meeting, Blankenship said he had dialogued with the commission chairmen from Henry, Geneva and Houston Counties about methods of reopening county buildings to the public. He said that the other chairmen concurred that, if allowed by the governor, they would open to the public Monday, May 4.

Blankenship said that 30 Plexiglas shields had been ordered for the courthouse offices that serve the public. The chairs in the hallways have been separated the mandated six-feet apart and that customers will be asked to stand three feet back from the counters.

Blankenship said that face coverings will be available to the county personnel who request them and the number of people entering the courthouse at any one time will be limited.

Dale County Sheriff Wally Olson told those attending the commission meeting that he will coordinate with the department heads to determine the optimum way to maintain security and social distancing in each department.

Dale County Maintenance Supervisor Eugene “Cajun” Evans said that the county maintenance staff are checking the restrooms, hallways and offices in the county buildings regularly and will concentrate on the areas that receive more traffic. Ways to keep the building entrances sanitized were discussed.

Custodial staff will concentrate on the busy areas, Evans said. Increasing the number of trash cans and having sanitizing stations at the building entrances is a priority, he added.

In unrelated business, Blankenship gave an update on the $25,000 Resource Conversation and Development grant that the commission had sponsored for a roof for the Flowers Center for Performing Arts in Ozark.

Part of the grant requirement is a $20,000 match in funds from the Dale County Arts Association and Blankenship said that the group is concerned about their ability to raise that amount during this time of economic shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Blankenship said he is researching whether the commission can redirect the funds to help the Ozark-Dale County Public Library in their quest for a new facility.

Blankenship said that the board had approached the Ozark City Council with a request to use a now-empty building owned by the city. The council is expected to vote on that request at their next meeting. Blankenship said the library board does have the $20,000 matching funds required for the RC & D grant and said he has asked RC & D and State Rep. Steve Clouse if the commission may redirect the grant to the library. If a redirection is approved, Blankenship said he will put the request before the commission for a vote.

In unrelated business, Blankenship said in the near future that he will be presenting figures to the commissioners to show the cost associated with the solid waste pickup. “We will have updated, current numbers that show the cost to operate the solid waste contract and we will need to address that issue,” he said.

The next meeting of the Dale County Commission is May 12. The location of the meeting will be announced prior to the meeting. The meeting