Board approves public-hearing resolution, three October proclamations and confirms staff announcements

The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors on motions approved a resolution to set a public hearing to vacate a portion of 280th Street, adopted three proclamations for October observances, and heard announcements about recent hires in county operations.

Why it matters: the street vacation hearing affects a private property owner seeking compliance with county setback rules; the proclamations are ceremonial but direct county promotional and lighting activities for October events; the personnel announcements inform the public about staffing in county services.

Resolution to set public hearing on road vacation: Jody Morris, project manager for secondary roads, described a request to vacate an additional portion of a county road near an individual property so the property owner could site an accessory structure in compliance with county setback rules. The board voted to set a public hearing for Oct. 21, 2025. Roll call votes were recorded during the meeting and the motion passed.

Proclamations: Maria Seak of the county Public Health department presented a proclamation designating October 2025 as Breast Cancer Awareness Month; the board approved the proclamation and staff said the courthouse would be lit in pink over a designated period in October and encouraged county employees to participate in local events. The board also approved a proclamation designating October 2025 as Substance Use Prevention Month; presenters highlighted local take-back events, Narcan training and partnership groups including Full Circle Recovery. Anthony McCartney and Andrew Dewey from Information Technology presented and the board approved a proclamation designating October 2025 as Cybersecurity Awareness Month; IT said it will offer employee activities, phishing exercises and outreach materials during October.

Consent agenda and personnel announcements: earlier the board approved its consent agenda with the removal of agenda item 2A. The board also acknowledged two personnel items announced in open session: Mike Smith was introduced as a new recycling center operator and Jasmine Elmore was introduced as the county’s new director of human resources; both were welcomed but no formal hiring vote is recorded in the transcript excerpt.

Public comment and next steps: a member of the public asked about the status of the county engineer hire and asked whether the former HR director would continue to be paid through June; the board chair deferred legal or personnel-payroll specifics to staff and said the commenter would receive follow-up on the roads question at the next meeting. The board adjourned after the scheduled business concluded.

Votes at a glance (per transcript): - Motion to set public hearing to vacate portion of 280th Street (Resolution 60-20-25): motion made and seconded; roll call recorded; outcome: approved (public hearing set for 2025-10-21). - Proclamation: October 2025 as Breast Cancer Awareness Month: motion made/seconded; roll call recorded; outcome: approved. County to light courthouse and support local events as presented. - Proclamation: October 2025 as Substance Use Prevention Month: motion made/seconded; roll call recorded; outcome: approved. Notable local activities include a prescription drug take-back and Narcan training. - Proclamation: October 2025 as Cybersecurity Awareness Month: motion made/seconded; roll call recorded; outcome: approved. IT to distribute training and employee activities. - Consent agenda: approved after removal of agenda item 2A; motion passed.

The board directed staff to follow up on procedural and legal items raised during public comment and to report back at a future meeting.