Stoddard County officials are working toward a county morgue with former Presiding Commissioner Greg Mathis no longer donating space at his funeral home since leaving office.
According to Presiding Commissioner Danny Talkington, the county is looking at constructing a stand alone building as a morgue near the jail expansion project on land already owned by the county.
“We will probably start the morgue before the jail project,” he said. “We want to get the budgets out of the way and then sit down with the coroner on the needs.”
The county is expected to go out for jail construction bids in September. A public hearing will be held on the budget during next week’s meeting, which will be Tuesday, Jan. 22, due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Talkington added a generator is located nearby and could be used for the morgue as well as 24-hour surveillance cameras from the jail.
Mathis, who owns Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home, told the commission last October he held several bodies for the county in his morgue and was required by law to hold unclaimed bodies for 10 days in efforts to locate the next of kin.
Once leaving office Dec. 31, he stated he would no longer be providing that service by assuming responsibility and liability.
Mathis also added he endured a majority of costs while serving as presiding commissioner by maintaining vehicles, insurance, autopsy and toxicology reports and equipment.
Commissioners Carol Jarrell and Steve Jordan both agreed a morgue would need to be established.
Dale Rogers of Robert Stearns and Associates, Inc., told the commission adding a morgue during the voter approved jail expansion project would be a “good opportunity” when first proposed last October.
Current Stoddard County Coroner Kenny Pope is a funeral director and embalmer with Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home.
In the event Stoddard County elected a coroner who was not tied with a funeral home, commissioners have said a county morgue needed to be established.
Pope reported to commissioners Monday morning he spoke with Stoddard County 911 Administrator Carol Moreland about temporarily locating his office in the 911 building rather than Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home.
“I talked with Carol and it shouldn’t be a problem,” Pope said.
BUDGET REVIEW
County officials were asked to bring any questions about their budget to the commission during Monday’s meeting.
Pope and Collector Carla Moore were present with questions for the commission.
With Mathis leaving office and the county taking on more financial responsibility for the coroner’s office, Pope said he appreciated the budget the commission gave him.
His main point to discuss was the coroner’s salary, which is $19,700, the lowest of any elected official in Stoddard County.
Pope also told the commission he was the lowest paid coroner within six surrounding counties.
“That’s where I’m coming from,” he said.
Before now, Pope said he has never been able to ask for anything because Mathis, who was presiding commissioner, was also who he worked for at Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home.
“I worked for Greg and he didn’t want to do that,” he said.
Talkington told Pope the salary commission was the only group who could raise salaries.
“I think an elected official is stuck, except cost of living increases, until the next election cycle,” he said.
If he chooses to file again, Pope will be up for re-election in 2020.
“The salary commission could make a decision in 2019 and it go into effect in Jan. 2021,” Talkington said.
County Assessor Dan Creg asked if there was anything that could be done for Pope at this time.
“I don’t know,” Talkington said. “I can’t answer that right now, but we will find out.”
Within Pope’s budget, $27,000 was allotted for a vehicle and he believed something could be found within that price.
If a vehicle out of the allotted budget amount was found, Pope said he was going to speak with the board of the Law Enforcement Restitution Fund, which has about $78,000 for use of the coroner’s office.
“If we find something over, I will try to get the rest of the money out of that by talking to the board,” Pope said. “It’s never been done before, but I think that’s what I’m going to do.”
Moore was concerned about her request of $55,000 for office supplies being cut to $35,000.
“I do a lot of mailings and that includes envelopes, postage and with land sales I have extra mailings,” she said. “I just think it’s quite a bit of a cut.”
Moore said her office supplies ran about $57,000 last year and believed the cost would run similar during this next year.
“If I don’t use it all, it’s still there,” she said.
Talkington told Moore the commission would look into her concern.
OLD METHODIST CHURCH DEMOLITION
A pre bid meeting for the demolition of the old Methodist Church, 201 E. Court Street in Bloomfield, will be held at 3 p.m. Jan. 24.
Anyone interested in bidding the job should be in attendance at the commission chambers.
Proposals for the job will be due Feb. 4.