February 2009 Entries
Friday Feb. 27, 2009
County commissioners propose new leadership scheme
As is, the Elkhart County Health Department — one of the largest offices in county government — is run by a health officer, who must be a physician and compensated accordingly.
With Aixsa Perez, who currently holds the post, set to step down in April, however, county commissioners wonder if it couldn't be managed differently, with less money. They propose hiring a full-time administrator to handle the day-to-day operations and a part-time health officer to meet the requirement that a physician be at the top of the command chain. That's how it's done...
Tuesday Feb. 17, 2009
It costs, but county officials say their annual retreat serves a valuable purpose
Elkhart County government's one-day retreat, held last Wednesday at the Essenhaus Conference Center in Middlebury, cost $3,100, according to the office of the Board of Commissioners. That's how much it cost to rent out a conference room at the Essenhaus and for the food served for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Around 70 officials in all attended — county commissioners, the county council, department heads and other county employees — though some were only on hand for part of the day.
The food ranged from donuts and fruit...
Sunday Feb. 15, 2009
Can you ask too many questions?
The Elkhart County Council on Saturday pried deeper than the norm into some of the requests for appropriations put before it. The body, which oversees county spending, meets each month to consider requests for extra funding by the many county government departments.
The scrutiny should come as no surprise given the reduced revenue coming into county coffers due to property tax reform and the tight economy.
Indeed, certain extra appropriations — funds not accounted for in the county’s annual budget and doled out instead during the council’s Saturday meetings — are a sore point...
Friday Feb. 6, 2009
How do you prepare for the arrival of a president? By the seat of your pants, it seems.
We learned here in the newsroom early Friday afternoon that President Obama would be coming on Monday for a town hall meeting. (Others in Elkhart apparently had an inkling before the White House called us.) But it's 8:30 p.m. as I write this and we still officially don't know where it's going to take place and all other sorts of details.
Thus, you get ready the best you can and keep your eyes and ears peeled. New details will emerge as...