Clarion emergency services director terminated

Clarion County Office of Emergency Services director Vern Smith has been terminated from his post.

The announcement was made during Tuesday’s Clarion County Salary Board meeting.

County commissioners Wayne Brosius, Ed Heasley and Ted Tharan and county treasurer Tom McConnell approved the termination but couldn’t offer comments during the salary board or commissioners meetings Tuesday.

It was also announced Tuesday that Ron Wolbert and Dan McDonald will continue as county 911 operations directors while Randall Stahlman will continue as the Emergency Management coordinator.

In other matters, several approvals regarding grant budgeting and Historical Interpretive Panel installation were made during the commissioners meeting.

Tharan approved a request submitted by Nick Cherico to install a Historical Interpretive Panel outside the county courthouse as part of his Eagle Scout Project. The panel would be placed in front of the courthouse facing Main Street and would outline the history of the courthouse and of the jail.

“The panels will be an asset to the community,” Tharan said. “Anyone who is walking by will be able to stand there and read about the history of the courthouse and jail,” he added.

The panels will be ready for installation within two to three months.

Commissioners also approved an amendment to the Intermediate Punishment pass through grant from Clarion County to the Armstrong-Indiana-Clarion Drug and Alcohol Commission.

Funded by the state Commission on Crime and Delinquency, the grant allocation totaled $127,856 for the July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016 term. Amanda Schroeder, chief fiscal officer for Armstrong-Indiana-Clarion Drug and Alcohol Commission, said the allocation has decreased in comparison to recent terms.

Schroeder said the grant primarily funds salaries of probation officers as well as any drug and alcohol case management and treatment for anyone within the probation program who is either a level three or level four offender.

Schroeder said the grant funding has decreased primarily due to funding with Medicaid expansion.

“More of the participants in the program are eligible for medical assistance and we are not spending as much treatment dollars through the grant,” she said.

In other news, commissioners noted a bridge replacement project will begin Monday on the Route 322 bridge over Deer Creek in Shippenville. Work is scheduled to be completed by late July.

The next commissioners and Salary Board meeting will be held at 9 a.m. Tuesday, March 22, in the commissioners conference room.