Lyon County commissioners scheduled a couple of big items as part of their action meeting Wednesday. One was approved, while the other will need further discussion later.
Commissioners postponed a decision on whether to approve the latest draft of zoning regulations as recommended by the Lyon County Planning and Appeals Board. The fifth draft that’s currently in the discussion phase essentially separates city and county regulations in an effort to streamline the process for county residents.
Numerous county residents have been upset with the regulations as they have moved forward since 2017, regardless of what was included, and they started a protest petition that garnered over 1,000 signatures. However, County Commission Legal Counsel Marc Goodman says the petition was invalid based on county and state law.
Despite this, Angel Cushing, who has been highly vocal in her opposition to the plan, stated she was pleased with the commission’s decision Wednesday.
Following the commission’s decision, many individuals took time to speak out during the public comment portion of the meeting. The consensus amongst many was that the public’s voices are not being heard by the county.
Commissioner Scott Briggs believes the county’s actions Wednesday suggests otherwise.
Commissioners are waiting until the Second District position is filled before moving forward. Former commissioner Dan Slater resigned his position shortly after Doug Peck was elected as his replacement earlier this month. However, the process for replacing him relies on a replacement being submitted by the Lyon County Republican Party to Governor Laura kelly, and that process hasn’t finalized yet.
Meanwhile, county commissioners have awarded the public health contract to Flint Hills Community Health Center after putting the contract out for bid last month. The Health Center has had the current contract since 2015 for five years at $2.25 million total in county support. County commissioners decided in October to put the contract out for bid.
The Health Center requested $650,000 per year which is $200,000 more than the previous contract. FHCHC CEO Renee Hively says the additional funds will be put towards additional staffing at the health center.
Newman Regional Health, the other entity to submit a bid, asked for $450,000 with the option of requesting additional county funding if needed and with the prospect of starting in January 2022 instead of next year to allow the Health Center to work through the pandemic.
Newman CEO Bob Wright says at this time the hospital has no plans to continue pursuing the public health contract, however, he believes that both public health and hospital operations will eventually merge at some point.
Briggs says the county’s decision to award the contract to FHCHC came down to continuity of services. The county did not wish to disrupt the current progress that has been made on the COVID-19 front by having a transition in the midst of the current spike in cases being seen across the country.
Commission Chairman Rollie Martin has stated on numerous occasions the commission’s decision to terminate the previous contract had nothing to do with dissatisfaction in FHCHC’s performance with public health. With that in mind, Martin says the commission did see some areas that could be improved which in part led to the decision.
The Lyon County Commission will reconvene for its weekly action session next Thursday inside the Lyon County Courthouse at 9 am.
