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County commissioners continue strategic planning session

By Staff | Dec 8, 2009

Another week of the strategic planning session that the Lee County Board of

Commissioners began in late October of this year, was held Tuesday morning, Dec. 1 with department representatives from the Lee County Elections Office and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office presenting information.

Commissioner Ray Judah said the board has heard at least a dozen

presentations from the departments of Lee County. He explained that the

board hears about two or three presentations a week, which usually takes

place after the board meeting on Tuesday.

Judah said the strategic planning provides the board of commissioners with

the opportunity to have an open dialect with department directors, so the

board understands the restraints they are under.

He said since Lee County is operating under a different economic environment

the strategic planning provides a really good one on one discussion.

“It allows us to work very close together,” Judah said.

The first strategic planning presentation was provided by Supervisor of

Elections for Lee County Sharon Harrington.

She provided an overview of how she makes the elections department work

under a tight budget. Harrington said over the past five fiscal years, they

have returned a total of $4.3 million of unused budget funds back to Lee

County.

Harrington also said they are maintaining the staff they currently have,

which is 30 full-time employees.

The only piece of information that Harrington shared with the Board of

Commissioners that might cost the county money before 2012 is new equipment for voting, which will cost $1.2 million. Harrington said she is in the

process, with 40 other counties to receive an extension for the new

technology which will in turn save money.

“Thank you for your efforts to be more frugal than ever” Commissioner Frank Mann said.

The Sheriff’s Office also provided a presentation to the Board of

Commissioners during Tuesday’s strategic planning session.

The LCSO currently has 1,585 employees, with 25 vacancies that are slowly

being filled as needed.

The presentation addressed the LCSO opening their own clinic, which they

hope to open in April of next year. With opening the clinic, the LCSO will

have some control of their health care costs.

Judah said the Lee County Citizen Survey that have been mailed out this week

is another step to the strategic planning that the Lee County Commissioners

began in October.

He explained that the survey is another way for the county to receive

feedback from the citizens on what they feel the core services should be,

along with what their expectations are from the different government bodies

of the county.