Elk Co. Commissioners address overdose death at county prison
RIDGWAY—The Elk County Commissioners made quick work of the agenda items for their Tuesday meeting and briefly addressed the investigation of a recent overdose death at the Elk County Prison.
Upon questions from the press, the commissioners stated that the investigation is still ongoing regarding the overdose death in Elk County Prison last month. Upon completion of the investigation, the commissioners said they will issue a statement and take appropriate action if warranted.
In other matters Tuesday, a resolution which recognizes March as Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, was tabled until the first March meeting so that community representatives can attend the meeting.
The commissioners approved a two-year contract extension services with Maximus Consulting Services Inc. The current Professional Consulting Services Agreement was set to expire on June 1, 2023. This two-year extension will cover fiscal years 2022 and 2023.
Elk County serves as the fiduciary head of the 10-county Northern Tier Regional 911 System (NTR911S) and renewed a one-year contract with MCMConsulting Group and the organization for the period from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023, at the cost of $112,428 that is taken from taxes paid by the counties in the NTR911S. This is a standard renewal of the service that MCM has provided for many years for the 911 system. Elk County also renewed a three-year individual contract with MCM for $13,500 per year, which is paid from the 911 phone bill tax fund.
A new contract was approved between Children and Youth Services (CYS) and the Children’s Home of Reading Youth and Family Services for Fiscal Year 22-23. This new contract came about because CYS needed to house an individual with special needs that only the Children’s Home of Reading could provide. It is hoped that this will be a short placement and that the individual can return to Elk County at a future date.
The Borough of Ridgway is asking Elk County to be included in the inspection process of homes and properties in the borough that are currently the property of the County Repository. A method is being created to ensure the borough has more say in approving purchases and purchasers of repository properties.
Due to a scheduling conflict, the Elk County Commissioner meeting scheduled for March 21 has been moved to March 22. The meeting will still occur at 10 a.m. in Conference Room #2 of the Elk County Courthouse Annex.
Eligible organizations and municipalities are notified that the Act 13 Mini Grant Program applications are due by February 28 and are available on the county website at co.elk.pa.us. The commissioners have increased the Act 13 Funding to $150,000 a year, meaning that $75,000 will be allocated to the funding cycle in the spring and fall application process. Now over $1,000,000 has been given out by the commissioners since the program’s inception years ago.
The next meeting of the Elk County Commissioners is scheduled for March 7, beginning at 10 a.m. in the Elk County Courthouse Annex Conference Room #2. The public is invited to attend in person or through the Zoom platform link available on the Elk County website at co.elk.pa.us.