The Dallas County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Tuesday.

At the meeting, the Board approved payroll changes notices for the Sheriff’s office and heard an update from Genesis Development.  Chief Executive Officer Terry Johnson with Genesis says they have opened a crisis intervention program in Woodward which opened on August 17th.  He says this is to help individuals with severe mental illness as there are not enough hospital beds in the state, and those are also not appropriate for such cases.  This allows them to stay there for a few days to take their medication and be evaluated before going back to their homes.  The other portion of the facility is for transitional living for individuals who may have been in the hospital or jail and have lost their place to live.  This helps these people have a short term place to live while getting back on their feet.  Johnson says other regions in the area have expressed interest in being able to use the facility.  Right now they plan to keep things as is but will be looking at options of expanding services in the future.  Compared to a hospital stay Johnson says this program comes at about a third of the cost.  He says there are a lot of things going on in Dallas County and Genesis has the support of the region.  County Attorney Wayne Reisetter says Genesis has provided relief for the jail and the transitional housing is a great facility for the County that fills a desperate need.

The Supervisors then reviewed the policies for the Veterans Affairs Commission.  Director Nick Praska says this will up the rent maximum from $500 per month to $650, which he says will allow veterans to have more options for housing.  Praska also says they are still looking for a female veteran to serve on the commission.  Anyone wanting more information can contact him.

Next the Board considered a vehicle purchase for the environmental health department.  Director Ted Truewn says based on the one bid received, they were requesting the trade in of a Dodge Durango currently owned by the County for a 2016 Chevrolet Colorado at the cost of $15,139 to Shottenkirk Chevrolet in Waukee.  Operations Administrator Connie Kinnard says they want to keep an eye on cash flow, especially in the first quarter and recommended waiting until October.  The Board took no action on the agenda item.

A public hearing in regards to the rezoning of property for the Heritage Woods LLC development was then continued for a third time.  Planning and Zoning Director Murray McConnell says they have added a preservation easement to the agreement.  Conservation Diretor Mike Wallace says though these easements are not typical it does benefit the project overall and he’s satisfied with the agreement as part of the project.  The Board thanked McConnell and Wallace for their work on the project and Heritage Woods for their willingness to work with them. The Supervisors unanimously approved the rezoning from agricultural to residential estate district.

A bid was then awarded for the Filmore Court bridge replacement project.  Gus Construction submitted the low bid, which was approved. Assistant to the County Engineer Bryan De Jong says the bid is more than $8,000 less than the engineer’s estimate and $400,000 was budgeted for the project.

A right of way purchase agreement with Teresa Gibson for the A Avenue bridge project in the amount of $525 was then approved, along with a right of way purchase agreement with Mac-Clar Farm LLC for the R16 reconstruction project in the amount of $8,050.

An abatement of mobile home taxes was then approved for two properties as recommend by Assessor Mitch Hambleton.

A request for proposals for custodial services and department relocation to the human services campus was then approved as presented by Facilities Director Eric Rose who says he has several contractors in mind to contact for both projects.  The Board talked with a representative from the Department of Human Services about furniture, whether the projects should go out for bid separately or together and who will pay for the move.  The Board directed Rose to go forward with the request for proposals for the custodial services.  He was also asked to inventory current furnishings to know what’s available to move or be handed down to another department.