Spencer County fiscal court approves ambulance repairs, alert system renewal, pay raise for pole workers and appointments

Spencer County Fiscal Court on March 1 approved a package of routine and operational actions: repairs for county ambulances, renewal of the county alert system contract, a temporary pay bump for election pole workers, a fire-board appointment and authority for short-term investment of loan proceeds.

Minutes and procedural items: The court approved routine minutes and post-executive-session minutes (motions noted as moved by Zach and seconded by Dan and Mike in the record). No substantive amendments were recorded.

Ambulance repairs: The court discussed several ambulance mechanical issues, including an oil leak and a suspected blown turbocharger on one unit known in the record as “Med 2.” After discussion about staged repairs (to avoid multiple ambulances being out of service at once), members moved and approved repairs at Shelby Diesel. The meeting record contains inconsistent or unclear estimates for one turbo-related repair (the figure read aloud in the record was ambiguous and referenced an internal estimate number 510253); however the court explicitly approved a second repair item quoted in the record as $37,950 at Shelby Diesel for another unit. Court members said they would seek additional estimates where appropriate and stage work to keep vehicles in service.

Emergency alert contract: The court approved a one-year renewal of the county’s alert service with Inspiron Logistics. Officials described the service as geotargeted forced cell‑phone messages (similar to Amber Alerts) that do not require users to download an app and said the price was unchanged from the prior year.

Pole worker pay for election: The court approved a temporary increase in pay for pole workers from $17 to $18 per hour for the May primary election (motion by Mike; second by Jim).

Planning & Zoning rezoning: On second reading the court approved a zoning change requested by John R. Henry and Kevin M. Henry to rezone 5.01 acres at 5541 Brier Ridge Road from A1 agricultural to A2 agricultural (planning & zoning recommended approval and no one spoke in opposition). The court voted to approve based on planning and zoning’s facts and findings.

Fire board appointment: The court accepted the fire board’s recommendation and appointed Mark Jeff to fill the remainder of Daryl Stevens’s term on the fire board, ending June 30, 2028.

Loan funds and short-term investment authority: The court received notice of a roughly $1 million bond/loan and authorized the judge and treasurer to invest up to the full amount in short-term certificates of deposit (members discussed ~91-day CDs and short windows to retain liquidity). The judge said loan interest expense was about 3.95% and the court considered short-term placements to earn modest returns without tying up funds.

Bills and transfers: The court approved payment of invoices and transfers as presented.

Executive session: At the meeting’s close, the court voted to enter executive session citing KRS 61.810 for personnel and potential litigation matters; the public portion of the meeting then recessed.

All motions and formal actions were recorded in the meeting minutes; members requested staff follow up on unclear repair estimates for ambulance units and instructed county counsel to review legal questions raised by residents on separate agenda items.