Cass County Commission approves Hawthorne Bank depository, bridge change order and sheriff equipment purchases; enters executive session

The Cass County Commission on June 18, 2025 approved a four-year depository contract with Hawthorne Bank, authorized a change order for the Cascade Bridge replacement project, clarified appointment criteria for the county planning board, and approved two communications-related purchases for the Cass County Sheriff’s Office before voting to enter executive session.

The measures were adopted by unanimous 3-0 voice votes during the regularly scheduled commission meeting. After the open session votes the commission voted to go into executive session under a statute reference cited in the meeting record.

The commission selected Hawthorne Bank as the county’s depository for the treasurer, collectors and the circuit clerk’s accounts for the term beginning July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2029. Chris Mullendover, a county presenter, said the county solicited competitive bids and received offers from Central Bank of the Midwest, JPMorgan Chase, Commerce, United Reserve Bank, UNB and Hawthorne. "For the first time, in a number of years, we're all gonna be at the same bank now together," Mullendover said, adding that the circuit clerk’s accounts will be moved to Hawthorne. He also said, "Current interest will grow by tenfold," calling the expected increase "substantial for county budget." The resolution (25-56) passed by a 3-0 vote.

The commission also approved change order number 1 for the Cascade Bridge replacement project (bridge number 20500021) after contractors drove the bridge pilot piles deeper than originally estimated. A project speaker identified as Travis explained crews "had to drive them a little deeper than what they originally anticipated," which required increasing pile length. The change order resolution (25-57) passed 3-0.

A separate resolution (25-58) clarified appointment criteria for the Cass County Planning Board, confirming that appointees are eligible provided they reside in the county’s unincorporated areas; the resolution passed 3-0.

The commission approved two Sheriff's Office procurements. Resolution 25-59 authorized the purchase of vehicle networking equipment from GovConnection Incorporated; a Sheriff’s Office representative, Ben Parker, described the equipment as "IT equipment... Verizon stuff so we can connect our office, to control cars and then talk back and forth on that." Resolution 25-60 authorized the purchase of portable communications radios from Motorola Solutions. A Sheriff’s Office speaker identified as Vinny said the purchases are part of routine equipment recycling and upgrades because older radios are approaching end of life; he added Motorola is effectively the system vendor. Both resolutions passed 3-0.

During the public-comment portion the county collector handed the commission a check for $50,000 to deposit into the county general revenue fund, a donation the collector made from his collections; the presenter was identified as Jack. After public comment the commission announced it would enter executive session under a statute reference read in the meeting record (the transcript records the citation as "r s m 0 6 1 0.021 0.17" and later references "18"). When the commission moved to enter executive session, the roll call returned affirmative votes from Bob Houston, Mike Worley and Jeff Fletcher.

The meeting record indicates the commission intended to return to open session briefly only to adjourn following the executive session.