photo by: Journal-World

The west side of the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts St.

Douglas County commissioners at their Wednesday meeting are expected to determine the timeline for the Senior Resource Center’s transition from a nonprofit agency into a county department, which will require nearly $220,000 in additional funding.

Commissioners will consider a transition happening by Oct. 1. A memo in the meeting agenda notes that although the full extent of funding the transition won’t be clear until it’s completed, the largest costs will come from the personnel expenses related to Senior Resource Center, or SRC, employees being added to the county’s payroll and benefits plan.

The salaries, benefits and other labor-related expenses are anticipated to rise with the transition. In 2024, the SRC’s budget allocated $667,853 for these costs, and this amount is projected to increase to $899,626 in 2025. While labor expenses increase, several costs are projected to decrease in 2025, including contracted services, operational costs and program expenses.

The county and SRC estimated that $219,726 will be needed in addition to the county’s existing $549,700 in support funding for the SRC. The County Commission originally set aside an additional $250,000 to support the transition as part of the Fiscal Year 2025 adopted budget.

The memo outlines that from January to March, SRC leadership and various county departments will begin developing and scheduling staff training and onboarding sessions with county IT, payroll and administration. In addition, planning for the FY 2026 SRC budget will commence, though both the budget and staff training/onboarding may not be finalized until as late as September. Public Works will also begin servicing seven SRC vehicles starting in January, as part of county fleet maintenance.

From April to June, SRC employees enroll in county health insurance plans, and their salary adjustments are scheduled to take effect in the beginning of May.

The transition for the SRC becoming a county department is expected to be mostly completed by October. As the Journal-World reported, in November 2024, county commissioners voiced support for the Senior Resource Center becoming a county department after conversations originated during the 2025 budget discussions.

In other business, county commissioners will:

* Consider approving a rule that would require wells to be dug upstream and downstream of future solar projects for the purpose of determining zinc contamination. As the Journal-World reported, in December, the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission voted in favor of the rule and recommended it to the County Commission for approval.

* Consider authorizing the county administrator to execute a contract with SumnerOne Inc. for a 60-month lease for new multifunction devices – which could include printers, copiers, scanners and fax machines – in the amount of $234,182 plus costs per copy.

* Consider approving a contract with George Butler Associates Inc. for engineering services at a not-to-exceed cost of $148,348 to replace a bridge carrying North 1600 Road, Route 442, over a tributary to Deer Creek in Kanwaka Township. A memo in the agenda notes that the existing bridge was constructed in 1964.

* Consider awarding a construction contract to Dondlinger & Sons Construction Co. Inc. to replace a bridge carrying North 900 Road over a tributary to Washington Creek and authorize the Public Works director to approve 10% more than the bid amount in case costs may be higher or lower compared to the original bid.

* Hold a work session with Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical, which provides fire services in Lawrence and EMS services throughout the county, and provide guidance for the LDCFM Governance Committee when discussing the department’s services and governance structure.

As the Journal-World reported, LDCFM operates on an inter-government agreement between the City of Lawrence and the county. That agreement was set to expire in 2024, but was extended for a year to give both governing bodies more time to reach a new agreement.

This week, both the city and county will receive a presentation from LDCFM about the issues involved in a new agreement. These include whether LDCFM should continue under its current model; what the acceptable service levels for the department should be; and how long the agreement should last.

The County Commission’s work session will begin at 4 p.m. Wednesday in the Douglas County Commission meeting room at 1100 Massachusetts St. The business meeting will follow at 5:30 p.m. The meeting will also be available via Zoom.