By Sara StrongRock County will have two more deputies — helping the six now on staff avoid the 20 hours of overtime they’ve been putting in per week.Sheriff Mike Winkels said, "It’s tough and you can see it on them."The Rock County Board of Commissioners approved Winkels’ request to hire more deputies at its Tuesday meeting.The county doesn’t have to advertise for the new deputies because the last round of hiring in November got a big enough pool of applicants to draw from.New Deputy Kris Harpham left while still in his probationary period and Sergeant Kurt Kester retired this year.The department is also in the process of moving a current deputy to the position of sergeant, and adding a part-time officer.Meanwhile, Law Enforcement is saving $32,000 with a new leasing arrangement for department vehicles. Instead of leasing seven vehicles, the department will lease four. This means each officer won’t have his own car or be able to drive it to and from work as in the past.County Administrator Kyle Oldre said an issue with the officers could be that they preferred taking ownership in their assigned vehicle. Response time could also be an issue, but the Board doesn’t anticipate any. Other than the officer on duty, there will be an on-call officer with a car at home, so if an additional deputy is needed, he won’t have to drive to the Law Enforcement Center to get a car.The Board said it will keep updated on the car situation in case fewer vehicles in the department cause problems.More savingsThe County Board also saved money in property leases Tuesday.The Board didn’t enter into a new lease agreement for the offices of Extension and Heartland Express, saving $21,000 a year.The county will find a home for Extension and Heartland Express (the county’s bussing system) on other county property.The lease is for the office complex on West Gabrielson Road. Commissioner Richard Bakken said, "It’s forced us to look where people fit and there are instances where we can find a better fit."The lease for the Land Management Office will remain in place in the office complex, largely because it is a convenient neighbor with the Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service.Other budget considerations The Board of Commissioners will direct department heads on how much to trim from their 2004 budgets at its next meeting.Oldre said, "It may seem like we’re not moving fast enough, but we are. .. It seems like every idea we get, there are some road blocks."Early retirement incentives and layoffs as well as service cuts could be a part of the Board’s solution to make the necessary $500,000 cuts next year.In an effort to more clearly know where county money is going, the Board invited organizations that receive money to present what their organizations do with it. From this group of presenters, the Board saved $500 in membership contributions .oThe county contributes and will likely continue to contribute $1,300 to the Jasper Ambulance Service and the Edgerton Ambulance Service. They both serve residents in Rock County and make trips to the Luverne hospital.oThe county contributes $6,250 to the Rock County Historical Society.The Society is trying to earn money as it can through speaking engagements; selling nonessential museum items such as books; charging for genealogy research; raffles and other fund-raisers and an endowment fund. President Betty Mann said, "There’s a limit on how many hours we can put in as volunteers, but we are making an attempt to raise money ourselves."oThe county gives $16,000 to the Rock County Agricultural Society, which runs the county fair.The group uses as many volunteers and accepts donated labor and materials to upkeep the fairgrounds and plan the fair. This year, it has also cut costs in areas such as administration and maintenance.oThe county also makes contributions to tourism promotion in the area. Dave Smith is the county representative to Travel Southwest and Southern Minnesota Tourism Association. Together, the county contributes $1,900, but is reducing its payment to Travel Southwest by $500.Southern Minnesota Tourism Association has a bigger pool of money and can more effectively advertise the features of the area.Smith said that the county’s funds are worthwhile, noting that there has been a 17 percent increase in tourism in southern Minnesota this year. Also, it tied agriculture for the state’s biggest industry at $9.8 billion. Rock County’s own lodging receipts have increased 9 percent for two years as an indicator of local tourism activity.Smith said, "I really feel it’s important we stay with tourism. … We want to keep the status quo with what we’re doing."oThe county contributes $1,000 to the Council for Arts and Humanities in Rock County. CAHRC envelopes organizations such as the Blue Mound Area Theatre, Rock County Fine Arts and the Rock County Historical Society.The organizations use CAHRC director Tammy Makram as a publicist and to generally do what volunteers can’t — such as put out newsletters or organize events. Makram said the organizations don’t pay to be a part of CAHRC, but pool resources to save money.CAHRC’s grants will be less this year than in the past because of state arts cuts, but Makram said, "We’re trying new things all the time and hope that people will appreciate what we do."Jerry Deuschle also represented CAHRC. He said, "If we don’t put on arts events in Rock County, who will?"oThe county contributes $1,000 to the Southwest Minnesota Arts and Humanities Council. That organization helps Rock County groups get more information for arts programming as well as giving state grants. The state cut SMAHC funding by 29 percent this year.One grant it won’t be able to do next year is the popular Blue Mound Writers Series, which is in its 10th year. oThe county contributes $15,000 to the Rock County Ambulance Service. That money goes toward ambulances, equipment and educational programs.oThe county contributes $1,000 to community theater group the Green Earth Players. Representatives Jim Harsma and Fred Manfred Jr. presented to the board.Manfred said, "This is community theater, we’re always looking for input from the community."Harsma said GEP tries to choose a balance of different types of plays to bring a variety to audiences.
