Sheriff Harry Gillway spoke with the Kimball county commissioners regarding a dual purpose dog for tracking and drugs at the regular board meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 15.

Reminding the board that many citizens donated money towards a dog in 2007, Gillway urged the commissioners to evaluate the citizens’ desires for one. He also said that in previous experiences, police dogs are loved by the communities he has worked in.

“Talk to your constituents, see if they want one,” Gillway said, “ They collected the funds for it.”

At the time of that collection the Nebraska State Patrol had a dog slated for Kimball, so there was no need for the county to have one.

Upon taking position in the department as sheriff in 2008, Gillway asked each donor if they wanted their money returned to them. Not one donor asked for the money, totaling $11,590, back instead suggesting that it be used as needed.

That money is still in the county’s possession, and now there is a need for the dog, according to Gillway.

With the meth lab bust last year and several missing persons, Gillway is interested in a dual purpose dog to assist with tracking both people and drugs. He has found a way to make it much more affordable as well.

Originally the cost of the dog, training, and upkeep in 2007 was around $10,000 and liability would have been great due to the “bite dog” status.

Recently, however, Gillway has found special pricing due to a shared arrangement with the Cheyenne County Sheriff’s Department.

This arrangement will cut the initial cost approximately in half, and have the added benefit of reduced ongoing training costs as well.

Another benefit is that Cheyenne and Kimball counties would then be able to reciprocate in certain situations, and extend cost sharing for mutual benefit.

A veterinarian in Cheyenne, Wyo. has offered to donate medication for the service animal as well, according to Gillway.

He said that Sheriff Jensen in Cheyenne County receives pallets of dog food from Iams and Purina free of charge.

Gillway informed the board that at an annual safety meeting with the Kimball Public Schools, Superintendent Troy Unzicker asked about a dog to assist with drug prevention in the Jr./ Sr. High School.

Board chairman Dave Bashaw asked about sharing the dog’s abilities with the city police force in certain instances. He questioned insurance liabilities, expenses, training, working times for the dog, and life expectancy as well.

Commissioner Larry Brower voiced concern about kenneling, wear on the vehicles, and the fact that most of the tracking work would be done in the city, not the county.

Gillway answered the questions, and agreed that more information may be needed. Sharing with the city force would not be a problem, with the understanding that the handler is the dog’s boss.

“We would work with the police within reason,” Gillway said, “ They would have to know they can’t control how the dog would be used to do the work.”

The working time for these dogs is four to five hours per day with a life expectancy similar to other dogs except in work situations.

Each dog differs slightly with how many years it can be on the force, usually four or five. One of the bigger concerns is that eventually the community, the trainer and the policing forces become connected with the dog and it becomes a pet. That is not the ideal situation for working dogs, and is one of Gillways concerns.

“I wasn’t sold on it in the beginning, but it would be something to look into,” Gillway said. “This (financial arrangement) is more manageable, workable.”

Gillway himself had a dual purpose at the meeting as well. He also updated the board on the proposed vehicle for the sheriff’s department.

Gillway, joined by deputy Loy and Brain Thacker from Wolf Automotive, presented Wolf’s bid for the Dodge Nitro.

The board previously said that is Wolf could meet or beat the state bid, the would consider going through the local dealer. Wolf was able to beat the state bid, and Thacker was there to answer any questions the board may have.

Thacker explained the differences in space, economy, and price of several comparable vehicles. He also stated that any warranty work would have to be done in Sterling at Wolf’s Dodge dealership. Although Chevys can be repaired and maintained locally, the comparable vehicles are pricier and less economic.

“I guess we are stuck with this,” commissioner Larry Engstrom said, adding, “There is no other option?”

“I feel economy size is where we need to focus,” Gillway said.

Commissioner Engstrom added that he would like to see the county rid itself of excess vehicles. The plan is to open one vehicle for auction and re-appropriate another to the county for assessor work.

Gillway mentioned that the Charger the sheriff’s department currently has is not appropriate for the driving conditions of this county. He suggests that the county may look into auctioning it or selling it to another county with less inclement weather and more highway uses.

In the end, the board approved the purchase of the Dodge Nitro for the Kimball Sheriff’s Department and a financing option was chosen. The county will put $8000 down and finance the remainder for two years at 1.8 percent interest.

Total cost of the Nitro from Wolf is $19,126.00.

Each commissioners reported on the NACO meeting and sessions they attended for the board as well.

Brower and Bashaw attended a break-out session on jail medical costs. the program was geared to larger counties and did not, in Brower’s opinion, apply as much to Kimball.

The standards looked more at regional settings for medical issues, according to Bashaw. Some jails charge for sharing inmates, which may have to be looked at in the future for Kimball.

Kimball’s jail is looking at losing state funding so the amount needed to continue jailing in Kimball would fall back to Kimball County, according to Brower.

“We learned that Kimball will probably lose most, if not all, of our state aid,” Brower added, “at a cost of close to $79,000.”

Commissioner Engstrom attended an ethics meeting regarding the dos and don’ts of board proceedings and contracts. He also attended an energy meeting which he found disappointing in that it did not address how taxes are effected by energy sources and resources, Engstrom said.

Bashaw also attended the Nebraska Public Power (NPP) meeting on wind energy. He said the meeting covered wind farms and legal problems regarding transmission of the energy. Bashaw reminded the board that the NPP controls much of the transmission rules and that makes it tough for the programs to work well.

County clerk Cathy Sibal reported that this last fiscal year has been busy for her office, as evidenced in the amount of fees collected, upwards of $31,000.

The board also heard from Don Brush, Kimball County’s surveyor. Brush was on hand to clarify a discrepancy regarding the survey for the Arboretum and Fairgrounds done in 2010. The survey differed from records on hand in the County Assessor’s office.

Steve Watson, secretary for the Kimball County Agricultural Society, brought documents in to clarify the issue as well. The Agricultural Society wanted to double check the boundaries before installing a new fence.

Watson and Brush were able to match all the documents to show the survey was correct and so are the previous records.

Due to distortion when using aerial photography, it appeared that boundaries had been moved in the GIS aerial photograph, however, the mapping and survey were all correct.

While Watson was present the board, at Sibal’s suggestion, asked about the hole left in the ground after removing some gravel. Watson said the Ag board would like the county road department to assist them in filling the void.

Reiterating a previous agreement, Watson said he was under the impression that if the Ag Society paid for the fuel and material, the county would furnish the work.

Discussion was tabled pending further conversation with Robbins and the Ag Society.

Before closing the board meeting, commissioners renewed a six-month contract for ambulance service with Jim O’Brien. Bashaw reminded O’Brien that while this contract was renewed, the county would continue looking into other viable options.