Jun 19, 2009 4 min read

WAYNESBURG – Greene County commissioners agreed Thursday to authorize negotiations with the state Department of Corrections for the possible housing of state inmates in the county prison. The commissioners authorized county solicitor Farley Toothman, Warden Harry D. Gillispie and Chief Clerk Gene Lee to begin negotiating a contract with the state that would pay the county to house state inmates. Lee explained that the Corrections Department has asked several counties throughout the state, including Greene, if they would be willing to house inmates because of overcrowding issues in various state prisons.

Greene County has been housing prisoners from other counties for years and receives a reimbursement of $45 per inmate a day. Lee said if the county does agree to start housing state inmates that it is hoped the county would receive at least the same rate or higher from the state.

“It would be a similar deal with how we house out-of-county inmates, so we would hope to get at least what we’ve been receiving,” he said.

The commissioners authorized Toothman, Gillispie and Lee to begin contract negotiations with the state after the county prison board voted to proceed with the negotiations during a meeting on Wednesday.

Lee said before any agreement or contract is finalized with the state, the county will have to address and resolve a variety of issues, such as costs, liability concerns and personnel matters.

In other action, the commissioners awarded contracts for the purchase of three vehicles to be used in different county departments.

All three contracts were awarded to one company, Day Chevrolet of Monroeville, which submitted the lowest bid for each vehicle.

Commissioners awarded a contract for $17,442 for a new four-wheel-drive Ford Fusion to be used by the assessment office. A total of five bids were submitted.

The company also submitted the low bid for a two-wheel-drive half-ton pickup truck to be used by the county fairgrounds crew. The company’s bid of $21,510.98 was one of four submitted. The next lowest bid, submitted by Whiteside Chevrolet of Ohio, was just two cents higher than the accepted bid, Lee said.

Finally, commissioners awarded a contract for $28,678 for a four-wheel-drive one-ton truck to be used by county maintenance. Three bids were submitted.

Funding for the vehicle purchases will be provided through a grant from the state’s Department of Community and Economic Development. Lee said all of the awarded contracts are pending approval by the county solicitor.

In other business, commissioners approved a resolution to extend the term of the state’s Keystone Opportunity Zones (KOZ) within the county by seven years, until Dec. 31, 2017. The current KOZ incentive in the county ends Dec. 31, 2010.

According to information provided by the state, a KOZ is a defined, parcel-specific geographic area designated by local governments and approved by the state as free of specific state and local taxes. Through the KOZ program, property owners, residents and businesses benefit from reduced state and local taxes on these properties for as long as 12 years.

The county currently has three industrial parks recognized as KOZ sites: Meadow Ridge Industrial Park in Perry Township, Paisley Industrial Park in Cumberland Township and Evergreene Technology Park in Franklin Township.

Lee explained that the municipalities and school districts where these parks are located also must grant their approval before it can become official.

Following the commissioners’ meeting, the county salary board met and approved several motions.

The board agreed to adjust the compensation rate for casual corrections officers at the county jail from $75 a shift to an hourly rate of $12.77, effective July 1.

The board also agreed to create four additional full-time corrections officer positions at the county prison. Commission Chairwoman Pam Snyder said the positions would be filled at a later date, pending an approved contract with the state Department of Corrections.

The board also agreed to hire Travis Lemley of Clarksville, Robert Kirgan of Rogersville and James Maraney Jr. of Carmichaels as casual corrections officers for the county prison, and also promoted Judy Davis of Nemacolin and Joyce Presock of Carmichaels to temporary/full-time corrections officers.

The board also agreed to hire Crystal Brendle of Waynesburg as a full-time temporary transportation associate, Steve Dulaney of Waynesburg as a transportation program specialist and Pam Caroll of Waynesburg as a transportation program assistant, all for the county human services program.

The board also approved a 3 percent cost-of-living salary adjustment for county management employees, effective July 1. The increase affects employees who are not represented by union. The last salary adjustment for those same employees was approved in June 2008, when they received a 3.5 percent increase.