The Big Horn County commissioners continue to work on getting the lease agreements at the county airports while another lease came up for discussion last Tuesday during the regular meeting.

Harold Shepperd, who was approved earlier this year by the now defunct airport board, for a salvage business, came to the commission asking how to move his lease agreement forward so he can begin work.

He said the place where he currently has his cutting area and planes is an area that B&G currently has leased and has expressed a desire to maintain that lease.

He has worked with GDA and the FAA for ground adjacent. "I'm willing to work with whoever if we can move forward with a plan," Shepperd said.

Engineer Willie Bridges, who is acting as the airport supervisor, said with the runway expansion project nearly complete and funding still available they are looking at establishing a road to the area that Shepperd is looking at. They would also include pads for storing planes in those plans.

The commissioners told Shepperd to work with Bridges. Bridges said if Shepperd's attorney wants to draw up an agreement, he and Big Horn County Attorney Georgia Antley Hunt can look it over and they should be able to get an agreement in place soon.

In other airport news, Bridges reported that the North Big Horn County Airport near Cowley needs a new computer. He said he wanted to keep the commissioners in the loop regarding equipment but that there was funding in the budget.

He also talked to the commissioners about having Pryor Mountain Engineering employees cover the airports on days or weekends when the managers are out of town. He said the main concern is snow removal and whether his employees would be insured while using county equipment. The commissioners told Bridges to proceed with the coverage and they would check with the insurance company.

OTHER BUSINESS

In other business, the commissioners:

Heard from Maintenance Supervisor Fred Werner, who said a small amount of asbestos has been detected in the courthouse boiler room and will need to be removed before the boiler is replaced. The commissioners approved Safe Tech from Billings to remove the asbestos with a quote of $3,000.

Werner said the boiler will need to be shut off for about 36-48 hours during the project, which he hopes can be done during a weekend.

In other maintenance news, Werner said the old lease agreement with the Town of Lovell for maintenance on the county annex building ended in July. He said he would prefer a four-year lease rather than a five-year lease to fit with the timeframe when county officials are elected.

The current agreement also provides for the town to handle any maintenance costs under $200 per month and atotal of $1,000. Werner said he would like to adjust those figures because most of the time maintenance issues are being delayed until they cost over $200, including changing light bulbs and cleaning carpets.

He said he believes the county should be responsible for water, sewer, electricity, outside lighting and heating and cooling system but day-to-day maintenance should be the responsibility of the town.

The commissioners directed Werner to work with Hunt to write up a new agreement to present to the town.

Werner said he is also looking at options for more storage space with each department running into storage space issues. He said he would have Safe Tech give him a quote for getting rid of the lead paint in the old jail and perhaps look again at a plan to remodel the old jail for storage.

Approved a Homeland Security grant for $103,016 and a Citizens Corps grant for $2,964 as presented by Emergency Coordinator John Hyde.

After an executive session, the commissioners approved an increase of $103 per month to compensate extra work for the Local Emergency Planning Committee secretary.

Approved a resolution dissolving the Health Reimbursement Account and to proceed with distribution to Big Horn County employees in the amount "commensurate with each employee's contribution (to the HRA)." The employees can use the funds to put into Health Savings Account available under the new health insurance plan.

Approved a coroner's grant for $6,000.

Approved the 2011 holiday list that includes one personal leave day. Holidays are Jan. 17, Equality Day; Feb. 21, Presidents Day; May 30, Memorial Day; July 4, Independence Day; Sept. 5, Labor Day; Oct. 10, Columbus Day; Nov. 11, Veterans Day; Nov. 24-25, Thanksgiving and the day after; Dec. 23 for Christmas and Dec. 30 for New Year's.