Linn County Commissioner Alison Hamilton questioned what she saw as shortfalls on the county's website during the commission meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 21. (Roger Sims / Linn County Journal)
By Charlene Sims, info@linncountyjournal.com
MOUND CITY – Much of the Tuesday, Jan. 21, Linn County Commission meeting addressed website issues and other questions from newly-elected Commissioner Alison Hamilton.
Hamilton said she had reviewed the county’s website and had found several issues and concerns with the information provided on the website. She told the other commissioners that she had been meeting the past week with Information Technology (IT) Director Chris Martin about questions she had concerning the website.
The first issue was that the website airport page was still up even though the airport is only available for daylight landings and does not sell fuel. The website page says that fuel is available.
Martin explained that he had taken off all the links to the airport and services when they were no longer available but since it seemed that the viability of the airport was still in consideration he had not taken the page off of the website.
The commissioners agreed that the page should be removed from the website.
Hamilton also questioned how easy it was for residents to report a road issue on the website and made suggestions about how putting a link directly to the form for reporting road problem would help residents.
She made a suggestion that an automated reply be sent to people after they submitted their road problem request form.
She also asked the other commissioners if it was acceptable with them if she worked with GIS/Mapping Director Pam Cannon in cleaning up the application for applying to be a committee member on the website. She felt that too many questions would discourage people from applying to be on a committee.
Hamilton then clarified with the other commissioners where the committee applications go when they are completed. She said that she would like to see them be given to the commissioner of the district in which the applicant lived and also to the head of the department for the committee for which they were applying: planning and zoning, economic development or airport committee.
She told the others that she had a new person for planning and zoning from her district but that she would like to put information about openings out on social media.
“I wanted to be able to go on social media and put that out there for people who are interested. I don’t want to just pick and choose my friends. I want people in my district that maybe, I don’t know, that would be a really good fit,” said Hamilton.
Commissioner Jason Hightower said that he also liked to reach out to municipalities to help build his list and then share that with the department heads of those committees. That way, they’re maintaining the list.
Hamilton also expressed her concerns that applications for positions like the planning and zoning director were not on the website. Martin pointed out that they were under the “job openings” tab.
She explained that other counties had township officers and cemetery district officers listed on the website. She said she thought that since they were elected officials that would be a way for people to contact them if necessary.
Hamilton asked the other commissioners if they were committed to the website going to another company and in the meantime having county staff making things simpler through Martin on the current website so it would be ready when transferred over.
Commission Chair Jim Johnson said that he was committed to having someone else do the website.
Hightower said that it would be nice if updates were made but current manpower needed to be considered.
Martin said that the corrections and changes that Hamilton was asking for would take not take much time to complete.
Along a different line of discussion, Hamilton also said that the commissioners needed to make a commitment to keeping up the courthouse. She added that she felt that the commissioners owed it to the public to keep up that building.
She said that she was concerned that the county had received insurance money to repair the roof on the courthouse but nothing had been done yet.
Deputy County Clerk Darcy Wilson explained that no one had answered bid proposals for repairing the steeply pitched roof and that even contractors who had expressed some interest decided not to bid. Wilson said they were still looking for someone to do the work.
Other questions Hamilton brought up were:
• Whether adding the committees and boards that commissioners attended as representatives of the county to the website was an option.
• Whether the commissioners and Economic Development Director Chasity Ware knew how many listings were on Facebook for different Linn County Offices. Ware said she will research that.
Public Works Director Shaun West explained that the Linn County Park had a Facebook page to notify people of weather and lake conditions, parking issues, tournaments and other items. He said this helped keep down the number of phone calls to the office.
• If the road crews worked on bus routes first after a snow or ice storm. Road and Bridge Operations Supervisor Jesse Walton said they tried to get the paved roads done first and then the blade operators know the bus routes in their areas so then they hit those next.
• Where the swim beach project for the Linn County Park stood. West replied that the letter to be given to Kansas Wildlife and Parks (KWP) was in the hands of the commissioners for their approval. They agreed to have him go ahead and send it and set up a meeting with the KWP representative.
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