Linn County commissioners approve 4‑H building rental policy, authorize budget‑timeline notice; multiple executive sessions held with no public action

At its regular meeting, the Linn County Board of Commissioners approved a temporary rental agreement for the Linn County 4‑H building, voted to send notices indicating the county may exceed the revenue‑neutral tax rate to extend the budget schedule, and conducted several executive sessions during which no formal action was taken publicly.

Rental agreement: The board reviewed a proposed rental agreement for the 4‑H building that allows free use for clubs, extension, county government units and youth‑education groups; a $150 daily rate for nonprofits and Linn County residents; and a $375 daily rate for commercial users. The agreement excludes grounds and prohibits alcohol. A commissioner moved to approve the contract; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote. Commissioners discussed previous cleaning arrangements – which a commissioner said may have been handled by the 4‑H council – and directed staff to confirm whether the council will continue cleaning or if county staff should be assigned the task.

Notice to exceed revenue‑neutral rate: Staff presented two notices of intent to exceed the revenue‑neutral rate to give the county extra time for budget work. A commissioner moved and the board approved sending the notices; staff said the notice does not itself bind the county to increase rates and that mailing to citizens is not required. Staff estimated the extension to be about six weeks and said they would confirm exact dates and submit the notices.

Executive sessions: The board repeatedly moved into executive session citing a statute number recorded in the meeting as “754319 B1” for non‑elected personnel and other subsections for information security; each motion was seconded and the minutes record that there was no action upon returning to open session.

Other administrative items: Staff asked whether a Myrick Mechanical invoice for new line‑set and electrical work should be coded as contractual or capital outlay and was directed to coordinate with Public Works. The board also began planning zero‑based budget scheduling and asked department heads to submit materials to a shared folder for review.

Votes at a glance: - Approve CFS Engineering invoice, $41,640 — approved (see separate article). - Approve repair payment for grader (amount unclear in transcript) — approved by voice vote. - Approve Linn County 4‑H building rental agreement — approved by voice vote. - Approve notice of intent to exceed revenue‑neutral rate — approved by voice vote.

What’s next: Staff will confirm cleaning arrangements and rental calendar with the 4‑H council contact (Abby), route the Myrick Mechanical invoice to Public Works for coding, confirm the exact deadline extension dates for the revenue‑neutral notice, and continue collecting department budgets in SharePoint for zero‑based budget review.