Supervisors approve deputy appointment, pedestrian-crosswalk contract and handbook change; send annexation response to Council Bluffs

The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved several personnel and purchasing actions, authorized a contract for courthouse pedestrian-crosswalk work and instructed staff to deliver a formal response to the City of Council Bluffs’ proposed annexation.

Those actions came alongside presentations and updates from regional nonprofits. The board approved a resolution confirming a deputy recorder appointment required by Iowa law, awarded a construction contract for front-entrance pedestrian improvements at the courthouse, approved a change to the county’s longevity-pay policy language, accepted the appointment of an environmental health coordinator and authorized a letter and resolution in response to a pending annexation by the City of Council Bluffs.

The deputy appointment: County Recorder Andrew Moats told the board that Iowa Code requires board approval for deputy appointments and asked the board to approve Resolution 10-2025, which promotes Mary Jo Turpin to deputy recorder following the retirement of a long-serving employee. The board conducted a recorded roll call; Chairman Bowne and Supervisors Shane, Wittgen, Jorgensen and Miller each voted “aye,” and the resolution passed.

A contractor selected for courthouse crosswalks: The board authorized the chairman to sign a contract to award courthouse pedestrian-crosswalk improvements to United Utilities Excavation. The county received several bids; one low bid was disqualified for filing errors and the recommended bidder’s price was cited in the meeting materials. Facility staff and Mike from Snyder & Associates told the board the work — removing and replacing a curb, pavement and associated bollards — is expected to require roughly 10 working days of on-site work (with bollard installation allowed later because of lead times). The motion to authorize the contract passed on voice vote.

Appointments and personnel items: The board approved the appointment of Tracy Knowskapel as environmental health coordinator and approved moving forward with the deputy-recorder staffing plan after Maryland’s announced retirement. Moats said the staffing change would save “about $5,000.” The board also approved the administrative resolution that authorizes the appointment.

Longevity-pay policy wording change: Human Resources Director Janelle Limerick brought changes to the county’s longevity-pay policy. After discussion, the board voted to change the handbook language so that regular employees working a minimum of 24 hours per week are covered by the longevity-pay schedule (the board did not set new dollar amounts at the meeting; the packet included placeholder figures and policy-committee recommendations, and the board left specific rates to later action). The motion to adopt the wording change passed.

Annexation response: The board reviewed proposed annexation materials submitted by the City of Council Bluffs that affect portions of Pottawattamie County near Mills County. Staff and supervisors discussed road-right-of-way concerns — in particular, county officials said they would request that the city accept whole road segments rather than only one half of a road’s maintenance responsibility. Supervisors approved sending the prepared letter and a supporting resolution to the city and to state reviewers; the board authorized the chair to sign and directed staff to hand-deliver and email the materials before the state deadline.

What the board did not do: The meeting record shows presentations and funding requests from Golden Hills RC&D and from PACE (the local arts center). Those items were presented for information and future consideration; board members asked questions but the meeting did not include final county funding decisions for those organizations.

Votes at a glance - Resolution 10-2025 (appointment of deputy recorder, Mary Jo Turpin): outcome — approved; vote — roll-call recorded (Chairman Bowne: Aye; Supervisor Shane: Aye; Supervisor Wittgen: Aye; Supervisor Jorgensen: Aye; Supervisor Miller: Aye). - Authorization to award contract and authorize chairman to sign (courthouse pedestrian-crosswalk improvements, recommended contractor United Utilities Excavation): outcome — approved (motion, voice vote; detailed roll call not recorded in minutes). - Appointment of Tracy Knowskapel as environmental health coordinator: outcome — approved (voice vote). - Employee-handbook longevity-pay wording change (covering regular employees working minimum 24 hours/week): outcome — approved (voice vote); dollar amounts not set at this meeting. - Authorization to send county comments and a resolution regarding the Council Bluffs annexation: outcome — approved; board authorized chair to sign and staff to deliver the letter and resolution.

Next steps and follow-up: Staff were directed to execute contracts, prepare any necessary follow-up resolutions or forms, and deliver the annexation response before the state deadline. County staff also said they would follow up with the recommended crosswalk contractor on scheduling and bonds, and county human-resources staff will bring updated policy text and the administrative procedure items back to the board for any further action.

Ending: The board’s actions focused on routine personnel, procurement and intergovernmental matters; several community presentations at the meeting were left as informational updates for future board consideration.