The Adair County Fiscal Court held a brief meeting Tuesday through teleconference.
County Judge Executive Gale Cowan updated magistrates about the addition of temporary staff to assist visitors as they enter the courthouse annex. Access to offices in the annex is currently restricted but people are allowed to enter in order to vote. A staff person now sits at a table near the entrance to assist visitors, getting them the help they need from various offices or directing them to the voting area or drop boxes where taxes may be paid or absentee ballots may be dropped.
The court gave Cowan authorization to hire temporary workers at a previous meeting.
“That has been a lifesaver,” Cowan said.
Two different employees work at the front desk and a third person comes in after hours to clean the building.
County Sheriff Josh Brockman reported that tax collection has gone smoothly despite limited access to his office in the annex, with more than $3 million being collected during the first three weeks of the month.
The court approved the hiring of Jacob Glidewll and Andrea Morrissette at 911 dispatch as part-time employees at $9.60 an hour.
Magistrate Chris Reeder brought up an offer by Hobdy, Dye and Read to extend the warranty on a boom mower by one month after the mower has needed several repairs. Reeder said he did not think the one month extension was good enough.
“They can’t fix it in a month, when something happens to it,” he said. “I think they owe us a little more than a month’s warranty.”
Judge Cowan said the person they have been working with has been in quarantine but she would get back with them about the issue.
Cowan told magistrates that a roadmap is being updated with the state and each magistrate will need to review the map for his district and verify each road in the county system and the road’s length. The map must then be adopted by the court.
In addition to Judge Cowan, magistrates Harold Burton, Terry Hadley, Chris Reeder, Daryl Flatt and Greg Caldwell were present for the meeting. Magistrates Sammy Baker and Billy Coffey did not attend.