The Greene County Board of Supervisors met Monday in regular session.

County Environmental and Zoning Administrator Chuck Wenthold said that the HVAC project for the Greene County Courthouse will start October 20th, pending any delays. Sheriff Jack Williams mentioned that about 250 yards of concrete was going to be poured this week for the new county jail and that the HVAC units arrived one week early. 

After a discussion with County Attorney Thomas Laehn, the Board agreed for him to draft a letter to submit to the Iowa Utilities Commission that they don’t support the Summit Carbon Solutions amendment to consolidate the two phases of their underground carbon dioxide pipeline project. Laehn said Summit wants to combine its first and second phases into one overall project, of which the county was not a party in the first phase, but they are for the second phase. Laehn mentioned to the Board to not draw litigation when the county didn’t want it. 

JD Myers from Summit also gave a report. He said there is new leadership with the company, including a new CEO. He mentioned that as part of their consolidation amendment, they are wanting to eliminate South Dakota and run the route through Nebraska to the West. He noted that Summit is wanting to achieve long sustainability for farmers and continue to make ethanol a viable industry. Myers said for land surveying, they are giving property owners a minimum of 72 hours notice, plus a one-time payment of $500 to survey the land. 

Then, following an over one hour closed session with representatives from the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC) to discuss information technology topics, the Board came back into open session and said there are four individuals who applied for the open county IT Director position. 

After the Board heard a review and was presented options for the county’s health insurance plan, they tabled their decision for further discussion. They also tabled another decision to make changes to the professional services agreement with ISG on the new county jail, pending review with the company’s attorney. The Board also approved a $41,113 payment from the Board’s budget to the contractor Tanner Wilks for work done in Drainage Ditch 171 of Jackson Township. The Board additionally, approved two resolutions to hire two full-time jailers for the Sheriff’s Office, with Halyee Berry and Kaitlynn Hess. They will both start with the same salaries of $48,000 and will receive a $1,000 salary increase once they are certified. 

The Board also approved amending the 2026 fiscal year five-year construction program with the county and the Iowa Department of Transportation that named the farm-to-market account from tax increment financing for road projects that totaled $10.5 million. Finally, the Board approved paying the E-911 bills, the County Recorder’s quarterly report of fees and the County Auditor’s quarterly passport report. 

Before adjourning the meeting, the Board briefly discussed possibly purchasing a plaque to be installed on the main floor of the courthouse to recognize the “School Boy Soldiers of Old Rippey” following a presentation last week. Some of the reasons that were stated included duplication of monuments, if one was going to be placed in the Rippey Cemetery, and better use of funds from the county, depending where the money would come from.