EMS requests new digs 

A vacant lot at Third and Howard may become the new home for Pratt County EMS. The county has filed a conditional use permit for that piece of property.

Pratt County EMS may be heading to a new building. Pratt County Counselor Bob Schmisseur informed the Pratt County Commissioners that he filed a conditional use permit with the city zoning board for a one-half block parcel of land for future construction of a new emergency medical center that would house EMS, Fire and Rescue, Emergency Management.

Schmisseur presented the information to the commissioners at their July 16 meeting.

The permit now has to go before the Pratt City Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals on Aug. 16 for their approval. If that approval is given, the permit would go before the Pratt City Commission on Sept. 4 for their final approval.

The current EMS building has no place to expand with Pratt Regional Medical Center parking lot on the west, First Street on the north, PRMC land on the east and the big hill on the south, there is no room to grow. More space is needed to accommodate EMS growth as employees are added, Schmisseur said.

If the lot is approved, it would provide enough space for more vehicles, drive-through bays as opposed to back-in bays only, more office space to include emergency management and more space to accommodate men and women’s needs.

While more space may be on the horizon for EMS, stubborn mechanical issues continue to plague a Pratt County Ambulance. Medic 4 was still in Great Bend for service as of July 16 and had been there a couple of weeks, said Scott Harris, EMS director.

The company working on the ambulance couldn’t get it to replicate the problems it was having here in Pratt. When the county has the ambulance, there are mechanical issues that show up, Harris said.

Another ambulance, Medic 3, has been overheating and has over 130,000 miles so Harris is considering starting the bid process for a replacement unit. Medic 2 is a 2004 unit and is the oldest of the ambulances but has the lowest mileage.

Mark Graber, county IT person, informed the commissioners that the county website needed an upgrade because some information needed to be updated and the system couldn’t accept the change with the current programming. The current version will no longer work, Graber said.

Heather Morgan, Kansas State University project manager, said it is vital for the county website to be up to date because it has an impact on economic development.

Having a website that is ADA accessible for those with vision issues is important to keeping everyone informed on county matters. Currently, the county web site is 85 percent ADA compatible, Graber said.

Graber suggested the county stay with the same company, CivicPlus, to do the upgrade because it is less expensive than going with a new company. If a new company is used, the previous company might lock up the website information and it would not be accessible.

The commissioners approved $5,625 for CivicPlus for the website redesign and update.

Sheryl Stevenson, district manager of the Pratt County Conservation District, gave a report on their activities and requested the commissioners donate $25,000 to the district as they have done in the past. Among their projects was giving a drip irrigation system to Skyline.

County resident Dwane DeWeese requested that the county give $150,000 apiece to USD 382, USD 438 and Pratt Community College from money the county receives from the Ninnescah Energy Wind Farm and will receive from the Pratt Energy Wind Farm currently under construction in southwest Pratt County. DeWeese said he was making the request strictly on his own and had no communication with any of these institutions to ask for the money.

The commissioners said they also have needs for the payments from the wind farm but would consider the request.

DeWeese said he was having electronic issues with the wind farm generators. His cell phone sometimes doesn’t work and he can’t always make contact with his irrigation system through his cell phone app for remote access. The remote control program cost $6,000.

When the wind and light are right, he said he was bothered by the constant flickering as the blades spin.