HomeMy WebLinkAbout20203106.tiffMINUTES
WELD COUNTY COUNCIL
August 17, 2020
The Weld County Council met in regular session in full conformity with the Weld County Home
Rule Charter at 6:30 p.m., Monday, August 17, 2020, at the Weld County Administration
Building, 1150 0 Street, Greeley, CO.
ROLL CALL:
The meeting was called to order by President Tonya L. Van Beber. Councilmembers Nancy
Teksten, James Welch and Gene Stille were present, constituting a quorum of members.
Councilmember Brett Abernathy was absent due to a medical condition. Also present was
Council Secretary Linda Kane.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA :
Councilmember Stille made a motion to approve the agenda, seconded by Councilmember
Teksten and carried.
APPROVAL OF DOCUMENTATION:
Approval of July 20, 2020, Minutes
Councilmember Stille made a motion to approve the July minutes, seconded by Councilmember
Teksten, and the motion carried.
REVIEW PROGRAM:
Jennifer Finch, Communications Department
Jennifer Finch gave an overview of the Communications Department. In 2011, a community
relations specialist position was created by the Board of County Commissioners. In 2014, a
second position was created to support communications and in 2018, a third position.
Prior to 2012, there weren't many news releases that went out to the public. Ms. Finch said it's
hard to build a relationship with your constituents if you're not communicating with them, so I
think it's a benefit to have developed this department.
What we do: Provide news releases; releases highlighting county projects; social media
content; employee news; newsletter content; website content creation and management;
graphic design; emergency response communication; special projects; and DHS
communications - specialist items.
County Roots Newsletter: Launched Fall of 2019 — highlights efficiencies, technology,
partnerships and educational projects county government is working on for the benefit of county
residents. Finch's team won the Tech Trailblazer Award from Granicus.
Joint Information Center: a centralized location where members of different departments or
agencies work together developing, monitoring and responding to communication needs during
an emergency event.
Discover Weld: launched in 2012 to promote the great people, places and events in Weld
County.
Councilmember Van Beber complimented Ms. Finch's department on its ability to
communicate internally and externally.
Ms. Finch addressed questions about time spent for social media and target marketing. She
responded that Covid-19 has drastically impacted her department, forcing she and her staff to
concentrate on communicating on that subject.
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2020-3106
See the Presentation in Addendum 1.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
There was no public comment.
NEW BUSINESS:
Coordinator Reports/Councilman Reports
Councilmember Van Beber said a benefit will be held Sept. 19 for Councilmember Abernathy.
See Addendum 2.
Bills
Councilmember Teksten made a motion to approve bills, it was seconded by Councilmember
Stille and carried. The bills were paid as follows:
o Weld County Phone Bill for July $25.00
ADJOURNMENT:
By acclamation, the meeting was adjourned at 7:35 p.m.
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September 21, 2020 Counciresident, Tonya L. Van Beber
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Council Secretary, Linda Kane
WELD COUNTY
COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT
WHO WE ARE
Jennifer Finch,
Director
Colorado Native
Journalism Graduate, University of Missouri
Rich Clarkson and Associates
Jennifer Finch Productions
Weld County District Attorney's Office
2nd VP of NACIO
Worked for Weld County Since 2006
Baker Geist, Communications Specialist
Weld County Native, Mass Communications (with emphasis in journalism and
broadcasting) Graduate, Mesa State College
Shaley Dehner, Communications Specialist
Weld County Native, Journalism and Media Communications Graduate, Colorado
State University
• Megan Garziano, Communications Specialist
Mississippi Native, Fine Arts Graduate, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
Brief History of the
Communications Department
2011
COMMUNITY RELATIONS
SPECIALIST POSITION CREATED
BY BOCC
2012
HIRED TO SERVE AS
THE CHIEF MARKETER
OF WELD COUNTY
GOVERNMENT
2014
SECOND POSITION
CREATED TO
SUPPORT
COMMUNICATIONS
2018
THIRD POSITION
CREATED TO
SUPPORT
COMMUNICATIONS;
DEDICATED DHS
COMM SPEC. ADDED
IT IS NOT DISTANCE THAT KEEPS
PEOPLE APART BUT LACK OF
COMMUNICATION.
WHAT WE DO
o News releases for BOCC items
o New releases for department items
o Proactive releases highlighting county projects
o Social media content creation, monitoring and
management
o Employee news
o Newsletter content creation and management
o Website content creation and management
o Graphic design for department projects
o Support for department communication needs
o Emergency response communication / JIC
o Discover Weld
o Special Projects (40th Anniv. Charter, 100th Anniv. Courthouse)
DHS
COMMUNICATIONS
SPECIALIST ITEMS
• Creation and
management of
www.weldchildcare.com
website
• Content creation and
support for Employment
Services, Foster Care,
Welfare Fraud, AAA, etc.
2019 STATS
news releases
published
social media posts
(41% team/total)
newsletters
published
news releases picked up
by the media (60%)
total reach on
social media
subscribers for
all newsletters
employee news posts
(45% team/total)
original articles
produced
SOCIAL MEDIA
• Facebook: 22,045 likes
(up 10.4% from 2018)
• Twitter: 1,033 follows
(up 14.5% from 2018)
2020 STATS
57 34 66/120
news releases
published
news releases picked up
by the media (60%)
/20
employee news posts
(45% team/total)
716/881 3.2M 71
385/941 83
social media posts
(41% team/total)
newsletters
published
total reach on
social media
26 9,100
7
subscribers for
all newsletters
original articles
produced
Social Media Followers
Facebook: 24,876
Twitter: 1,462
AS OF 7/31/20
COVID-1 9
Weld County Joint
Information Center (JIC)
• 24 news releases for BOCC
• 14 news releases for Health
• 202 social media posts
• 62 social media responses
• 338 media inquiries
• 20 radio interviews
• 3 television interviews
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WHAT DOES COUNTY GOVERNMENT DO?
WHY SHOULD TAXPAYERS CARE?
• Spring of 2019: challenged my team to develop a county newsletter unlike others
we had seen that answered two questions: What does county government do?
Why should taxpayers care?
• Fall of 2019: County Roots was launched
Growth is organic
• Increases every issue
• 50% open rate
• Highlights efficiencies, technology, partnerships and educational projects county government
is working on for the benefit of county residents.
Team won the Tech Trailblazer Award from Granicus.
The Weld County communications team is increasing transparency and civic
engagement through an email newsletter editorializing the services, staff, and
people of Weld County. With relevant content backed by govDelivery, their
software for email and social media posts, the County was able to efficiently
provide residents with useful information about their county government. In one
year, they've doubled the number of newsletter subscribers and achieved a 43%
open rate, well above government email benchmarks.
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WELD COUNTY
JOINT INFORMATION CENTER
• A joint information center is a centralized location where members of
different departments or agencies work together developing,
monitoring and responding to communication needs during an
emergency event.
• Benefits include having access to subject matter experts
• Working with fellow communicators who understand the needs of public
information
• Brainstorming and coordinating responses to communication questions and issues
▪ Ability to divide and conquer; be the bridge between the public and the agency
• Baker Geist, Shaley Dehner, Megan Garziano
• Rachel Freeman and Casey Hutchins
DISCOVER WELD
▪ Launched in 2012 to promote the great people, places and events in
Weld County
Website and social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube)
Great working relationships with Weld County municipalities to promote their
people and events
▪ Great working relationship with Upstate Colorado (working on developing the
website to be more of a companion site to Upstate's site)
Great working relationship with Visit Greeley
• Radio Interviews
• Grants
• Print Collateral
THE SINGLE BIGGEST PROBLEM IN
COMMUNICATION IS THE ILLUSION
THAT IT HAS TAKEN PLACE.
-GEORGE BERNARD SHAW
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0(1'' OF THE PROCEEDS ADS,GO TO THE
BRETT ,4,BERN I 'THY BURN RELIEF F FUND
September is th. 2'020ti,, 6°30 pm i n til the last 4)rie leaves
14198 County nty Rood 9O, Pierce, G.'O, 80650
Brett Abernathy's friends are coming together to throw a party that would make Brett proud.)
Brett who was burned over 30 percent of his body in a car fire needs long-term rehabilitation
that is very expensive. We're asking the community to come together to help his young
family be able to heal without worrying about his cost of care.
If you can donate a silent auction item, or would like to assist in the planning of food or setup, please call Tonya
at 970-590-7141.
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