Commissioners retaining all appointed employees in 2016

With end-of-year business at hand Monday evening, the Putnam County Comissioners made their 2016 employee appointments, voting to retain all commissioner appointments.

While many department heads are publicly elected, and most employees are hired by individual departments, 18 employees are directly appointed by the county commissioners.

Department heads returning to their current positions include Highway Supervisor Mike Ricketts, 911 Director Dave Costin, Planning Commission Director Brett Wagner, Microfilm Director Kathy VanArsdale, GIS Director Robbie Cudnik, Veterans Officer Jerry Williamson, Soil and Water Director Sue Crafton, Board of Health Officer Dr. Robert Heavin, Maintenance Supervisor Tom Gilson, courthouse head custodian Brian Smith and EMA Director Tom Helmer.

Other appointed employees include courthouse custodian Mike Phillips, part-time custodian Ken Hutcheson, highway administrative assistant Radene Varvel, highway secretary Brenda Turner, building inspector Art Kenworthy and weights and measures inspector Royal Secore.

Charles Colbert, who was also a weights and measures inspector, told the commissioners recently he would like to retire.

Before approving Varvel and Turner to their positions at the highway department, Commissioner Rick Woodall questioned why the commissioners actually appoint these positions, when they are technically under the direction of the highway supervisor.

County Attorney Jim Ensley, who was also reappointed Monday, said he will look into the issue to see if the process should be changed in the future.

Commissioner appointments to boards and commissions will take place at the Monday, Jan. 4 meeting.

One major change to the commissioners' calendar in 2016 will be meeting times. The commissioners had previously met in the morning for their first meeting of the month and in the evening for their second meeting.

The evening meeting had been for the convenience of citizens who cannot make the daytime meeting. However, seeing a general lack of engagement, the commissioners chose to move the second meeting to 9 a.m. as well.

"Looking at turnout, I think we get more people at the 9 a.m. meetings," Woodall said.

Unless otherwise noted because of holidays, the Putnam County Commissioners will meet at 9 a.m. on the first and third Mondays of each month.

The only exceptions to this are meetings on Tuesday, Jan. 19 because of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Tuesday, July 5 due to Independence Day and Tuesday, Sept. 6 due to Labor Day.

The 2016 holidays on which county offices will be closed include New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 18), Good Friday (March 25), Primary Election Day (May 3), Memorial Day (May 30), Independence Day, Labor Day (Sept. 5), Columbus Day (Oct. 10), General Election Day (Nov. 8), Veterans Day, Thanksgiving (Nov. 24, 25) and closing at noon on New Year's Eve.

With Christmas Eve and Christmas falling on the weekend in 2016, the courthouse will close at noon on Thursday, Dec. 22, not to reopen until Tuesday, Dec. 27.

In other business:

* The commissioners opened 2016 highway bids and accepted all as presented before turning them over for Ricketts to review.

* Ricketts reported that $71,918.51 has been spent on stone to repair gravel roads this year.

* The commissioners will meet for one last time in 2015 for final approval of claims at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 31.