By Karen Middleton
Limestone County Schools will soon begin screening students for dental and vision problems at the old health department building on West Elm Street.
Monday, the Limestone County Commission signed a lease agreement with Sarrell Regional Dental and Eye Centers for Public Health Inc. for $1 per year.
Sarrell will handle all utility costs for the building that has sat empty since last year when the health department moved to its new facility off U.S. 31 South on Clyde Mabry Drive.
The school board approved the arrangement with Sarrell in early November and the county gave verbal approval for use of the old health department building on Nov. 17.
The non-profit Sarrell will screen students to help reach those who are poor and without dental care. The schools pay nothing. Students in county schools will receive free dental screenings that could lead to free or affordable dental care at a later time.
It covers its costs by serving children, ages 1-20, who are eligible for Medicaid or BlueCross/BlueShield ALL Kids, Alabama’s free and low-cost insurance for children. Sarrell has similar dental clinics in Anniston, Bessemer, Boaz, Enterprise, Heflin, Leesburg Talladega and Mobile, and vision centers in Anniston, Bessemer, Boaz and Heflin.
Other business
In other business, the commission:
• Accepted an Smart Government Award from Revenue Discovery Systems (which recently merged with Alatax, the county’s former sales tax collection vendor) in recognition of the public/private partnership the county instituted last year to begin inmate preliminary hearings at the Limestone County Jail rather than transporting inmates to the courthouse. RDS representatives Pete Younce and Kennon Walthall presented the award. Also on hand for the presentation was James True of CNG documenting software.
• Approved a $105,000 appropriation to the Limestone County Economic Development Association. Commission Chairman David Seibert said the appropriation was to “provide latitude” to LCEDA President Tom Hill for some industrial prospects he is working on. Hill said when contacted later in the day that he is hoping to take advantage of opportunities and “ramp up marketing” to be in place when the economy turns around.
• Approved changing the beat lines between Beat 7 and 14 to insure voter privacy. As it stood, ballots in those voting districts were just for certain elections, so therefore, people seeing voters there would know for whom they were voting.
• In further election matters, the commission approved changing six polling places to be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Help America Vote Act of 2002. The changes include: Voting Center 6 from Piney Chapel fire department to Elkton Road Baptist; Beat 3 from Oak Grove fire department to Wooley Springs Baptist; Beat 5 from Leggtown Store to West Limestone fire department; Beat 6 from Lester Post Office to Lester Town Hall; Beat 10 to combine Reid Elementary and Blackburn Baptist in Round Island Baptist; and Beat 14 from Tanner fire department to Tanner Baptist.
• A lease agreement for a 2009 GMC Chevrolet Tahoe for an annual rent of $1 for the Sheriff’s Department;
• Accepted the resignation of Don Mansell from the Pryor Field Regional Airport Authority and then appointed Nancy Swanner to serve out his term until Sept. 30, 2011;
• Appointed Mike Nave to the Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area Steering Committee of the Management Planning Board for three years;
• Set a 25 mph speed limit on Landview Lane off the south side of Pepper Road, just west of McCulley Mill;
• Approved renewal of bingo permits for DAV, Vietnam Veterans and VFW;
• Approved closing the courthouse, Clinton Street and Washington Street annexes from noon to 1 p.m. Dec. 15 for employee Christmas dinner;
• Approved closing county government office Dec. 24-25;
• Elk River Mills Road at the river bridge will be closed in one lane for 5-7 weeks from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day for repairs and repainting.
