New Pulaski County Commissioners President Presents Maintenance, IT Restructuring Proposals

The new president of the Pulaski County Board of Commissioners is laying out his proposals to overhaul the Maintenance Department and IT services. Chuck Mellon shared his ideas with the rest of the commissioners last week.

The restructured Maintenance Department would be led by a maintenance director, who would report directly to the commissioners. That person would be responsible for repairing and servicing mechanical and electrical systems, as well as taking care of structural issues. The maintenance director would also have to develop daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly maintenance schedules.

Reporting to the maintenance director would be a head custodian, who would supervise custodial staff, create cleaning schedules, and make minor repairs. Mellon looked into what other major employers in the county are paying, to help develop cost estimates.

He also proposed overhauling Pulaski County’s IT procedures. The county doesn’t currently have an in-house IT department. Most of that work is contracted out to Roeing IT Solutions, with additional help from DeGroot Technology.

Mellon suggested forming a tech support group with representatives from those companies, Jason Woodruff with the Sheriff’s Department, the county auditor, the county attorney, and maybe a council member and commissioner. The group would coordinate purchases and potential grant applications, review contracts and purchase agreements, deal with ethics and security issues, and make sure county employees know about any major and minor repairs being planned.

Mellon envisioned having a group that could meet at a moment’s notice, rather than a formal committee that would have to give advance notice and meet in public. The idea of an IT advisory board has been discussed for years.

Commissioners Maurice Loehmer and Mike McClure expressed support for Mellon’s proposals. He now plans to present them to the county council during a joint session on February 8.