County departments brief commissioners on IT, planning, conservation and records digitization

Several county departments provided informational briefings to the commission.

Information Technology: IT head Jake reviewed recent upgrades (phone system, server and security improvements), plans for a secure text messaging platform, AI features for phone routing, an upcoming refresh of in‑car and body cameras and design/implementation responsibilities for the new justice center. Jake noted the county was awarded the maximum statewide security grant of $350,000 to help fund justice center security features.

Planning & Zoning: Toby Brown summarized the department’s role implementing the December 2024 citizen‑driven comprehensive plan, zoning and subdivision regulations, permit and inspection metrics (more than $100 million in permit valuation in recent years), and outreach practices including neighborhood meetings for rezoning petitions. He said the joint jurisdiction comprehensive plan with the city of Sou Falls would be scheduled for a planning commission hearing on March 17.

Conservation District: Jeremy reported that the Lincoln County Conservation District continues conservation work and is seeking administrative support funding while pursuing state grants; equipment updates were noted as a potential need.

Register of Deeds: Becky Vanderberg reported progress on a scanning project that digitized recorded books and microfilm; her office has received raw images and will proceed with indexing and possible future online access. She emphasized indexing as a next step to make historical documents searchable and suggested possible contractor assistance to index older records comprehensively.

None of these briefings required immediate commission action; they were informational and intended to guide budget and implementation planning.