07/25/2016 MinutesCITY OF GRAND ISLAND, NEBRASKA
MINUTES OF JOINT HEALTH SPECIAL MEETING
July 25, 2016
Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a Special Joint Meeting of the City Council of the City of
Grand Island, Nebraska, the Hall County Board of Supervisors, the Hamilton County Board of
Commissioners, the Merrick County Board of Commissioners, and the Central District Health
Department was conducted at the Grand Island Public Library, 211 North Washington Street,
Grand Island, Nebraska on July 25, 2016. Notice of the meeting was given in the Grand Island
Independent on July 19, 2016.
Central District Health Department (CDHD) Health Director Teresa Anderson called the meeting
to order at 6:00 p.m. The following Health Board members were present: Sandra Barrera,
Brandon Bowley, Traci Dieckman, Jeremy Jones, Holly Solt, Jane Richardson and Tom Weller.
Hall Co. Supervisors Jane Richardson, Gary Quandt, and Hall County Clerk Marla Conley;
Merrick Co. Supervisor Tom Weller. The following Grand Island City Councilmembers were
present: Linna Dee Donaldson, Julie Hehnke, Jeremy Jones, Vaughn Minton, Michelle Fitzke,
Chuck Haase, Mitch Nickerson, Mayor Jeremy L. Jensen, City Administrator Marlan Ferguson,
and City Clerk RaNae Edwards. Health Department employees: Teresa Anderson, Stephanie
Bunner, Colette Evans, Jeremy Collinson, Amy Houser and Deborah Larson.
Year in Review. Central District Health Department (CDHD) Executive Director Teresa
Anderson welcomed those attending and gave an overview of the CDHD. Presented was the
CDHD mission statement which was: To protect and improve the health and wellbeing of our
community. Their vision statement is: Healthy People, Healthy Communities. Their core values
were: Communication, Optimal Health, Respect, and Excellence. Ms. Anderson stated the
CDHD was working on becoming an accredited Health Department.
Stephanie Bunner with the CDHD presented the benefits of accreditation. Accreditation
identifies strengths and areas of opportunity; strengthens & increases internal and external
partnerships; provides accountability to external stakeholders; gives communities an active voice
and role in addressing health issues; encourages health departments to prioritize and address long
standing concerns. It acts as a"stimulus... for continuous quality improvement and performance
management in (our) daily practice" and its competitiveness for funding opportunities. Ms.
Anderson stated there were 3 other Health Departments within Nebraska that were accredited.
Health Educator Amy Houser talked about Walkability. She explained they had received a 1422
grant for Complete Streets. In November 2015 they held a Grand Island Walking & Biking
Summit with 62 participants. The purpose was to create a community driven action plan for a
more walkable and bikeable Grand Island. Complete Streets was identified as a top action item.
The goal was to pass a Grand Island Complete Streets policy by December 2016. Complete
streets are streets for everyone, no matter who they are or how they travel — motorists, transit
riders, pedestrians, and cyclists. The solution to complete streets was to have a policy to ensure
that the entire right-of-way is planned, designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to
provide safe access to all users. Complete streets would look at all streets within the City.
Environmental Health Supervisor Jeremy Collinson commented on what they had been working
on over the last year. The CDHD water testing laboratory was one of five certified labs in the
Page 2, City Council Special Meeting, July 25, 2016
State of Nebraska. They do 16 water samples every week. Weekends, nights and holidays were
busy for inspectors who check all mobile units along with special events throughout the City for
food inspections. Mosquitos were low this year due to the dry weather. They check standing
water every week. Currently they were not doing any fogging. West Nile was very low this year.
To date there were no cases of the Zika virus acquired in the United States, but 1,400 cases
reported of people who have traveled outside the United States and had caught the virus.
Teresa Anderson commented on the Community Health programs. Explained was the diabetes
prevention program they were offering which had been very successful. They were working
closely with Physicians and Clinics within the community regarding their medical electronic
health records systems. The WIC program was mentioned with increasing numbers of
participants. It's a federal program through the Department of Ag. Mentioned was the
Immunization program which was able to provide vaccinations to refugees.
Health Project Supervisor Colette Evans gave an update on the Health Projects. Mentioned was
the Every Woman Matters program. She stated they have health fairs in Grand Island every
quarter. Mentioned was the VetSET Nebraska program which acclimates post 911 veterans into
the community. September would have been the end of this program unless they receive
additional funding. They had secured funding through March 2017 from the Veterans
Administration.
Budget Overview. Teresa Anderson gave an overview of the 2016-2017 budget which was
approved by the Health Board. This year's budget was $3.9 million which was less than last
years $4.2 million. Revenue sources were presented with the City/County portion at 8% of total
revenue. She stated they appreciated the local support. Most of the Federal dollars were for WIC,
which were funds from the tobacco industry. Received was approximately $260,000 per year for
infrastructure. Expenses were reviewed with the majority of the expenses going toward
personnel and operating and very little to capital.
Ms. Evans commented on the June 30, 2016 event for the veterans held at the CDHD. Mentioned
was that there were 22 suicides everyday throughout the United States committed by veterans.
Viewed was a video "Honoring Our Heroes".
City Administrator Marlan Ferguson thanked Jeremy Collinson for his help with getting
information out about the food and beverage tax.
ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 6:55 p.m.
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RaNae Edwards
City Clerk