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Thursday, September 10, 2020 – 4:30 p.m.
Courthouse, Main Courtroom, 16001 Barnesville Street, Zebulon, Georgia
www.pikecoga.com/novusagenda has an online agenda and accompanying information for this meeting. Monthly information from Animal Control, Coroner, Fire Department, Grady, Library, Magistrate Court, McIntosh Trail CSB, Planning & Development, Registrar, Superior - Juvenile Court, Tax Assessor, and the Water Authority are included as well during the morning meeting only.
* We encourage that attendees follow recommended Covid-19 guidelines which include staying home if you are ill/not feeling well, washing your hands, maintaining social distancing, and wearing a face covering (recommended but not required)
All five commissioners were present for the meeting along with County Manager (CM) Brandon Rogers, County Attorney Rob Morton, and County Clerk Angela Blount. The Vice-Chair got the meeting started in the Chairman's stead, but Commissioner Tim Daniel quickly turned the meeting over to the Chair when he arrived right after the silent invocation and pledge. Representatives from all of the ambulance services were present at the meeting as well as many citizens and some from the EMS community.
1. CALL TO ORDER .............................................................................. Chairman Briar Johnson
2. INVOCATION…………………………………………………………………..Silent Invocation
3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE ............................................................... Chairman Briar Johnson
4. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA - (O.C.G A. 50-14-1 (e) (1))
5. AWARD AMBULANCE CONTRACT
CM Brandon Rogers had one last question to ask. Community outreach and how it would affect football and recreation fields
Ameripro. We do event planning now and are able to bring in extra ambulances. Also do outreach with Scouting. Any additional cost? Yes if the football game is required to stop if an ambulance answers a call.
AMR. We post the on duty ambulance there or trained personel. We can also post an off duty ambulance there. We do classes with the public. We do Safety Jams with Public Safety and the public to update kids and elderly as a public service. We may be able to work something out with this.
Community. We covered this before when we were here and sitting by a recreation field isn’t a problem though they would prefer a dedicated ambulance. They do all kinds of outreach.
Veterans. Plan is to have a non-emergency truck to cover football games and recreational so it doesn’t take away from emergency transport. If the truck gets a call for transport, one of the other two 911 transports can come in and stand by so there is necessary protection. Community outreach CPR, first aid, Stop the Bleed program, blood pressure checks with the Senior Center, and Drunk Driving program for Seniors so they don’t drive on prom night. Mentioned working with the fire department with a smoke alarm program.
Commissioner Tim Daniel asked all of the representatives if they are talking about 2 ALS (advance life support) certified trucks? All nodded yes.
Chairman Briar Johnson advised that we expect the trucks to be emergency transport only. Yes from all 4.
CM Brandon Rogers said that he researched this and said that this is a broad range of service providers here. He walked through his thoughts for the record. Veterans-I don’t believe they have run emergency calls for a county. There will be a transition period between now and October 31 when Grady leaves. He worries that they won’t be able to make that change in time. He said that the county had some issues with Community in the past with non-emergency calls though things may have changed. His recommendation is Ameripro. He thinks that the funding from the CARES Act, there will be no impact on the millage rate despite the cost.
Commissioner James Jenkins made a motion to go with Veterans for 3 year contract for $400,000 each year and asked that the county review this on a yearly basis. Tim Guy 2nd.
Discussion: Tim Daniel said that the reason we are sitting here today is not the paramedics from Grady. The problem was the money they were charging, and it kept getting higher and higher. I’m impressed with Ameripro, but he stressed that commissioners were here to look after the money if they (Veterans) can do the job.
Motion passed 4-1 with Briar opposed.
6. ADJOURNMENT: 4:46 p.m.
Agenda subject to revision.
[Note from the Editor: Pike County Times was advised by CM Rogers after the September 10, 2020 Special Called Meeting of the Pike County Board of Commissioners that there had been a meeting between the county and Grady in which Grady said that they were exiting the county. Pike County will continue to pay Grady the $350,000 agreed upon in our current contract. Pike County has also verbally agreed to Grady's interpretation of the contract based on metrics (One 24/7 truck and one 12 hour truck from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.) and is allowing them to run their service as they see fit.]
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