Still no consolidation at jail kitchen

NORWICH – A three-year-long discussion about how to consolidate the meal services offered by two government departments currently using the cafeteria at the Chenango County Public Safety Facility continued on Tuesday.

Neither food purchasing nor meal preparation is being done collectively more than a year after the operations moved into the 130-bed jail and public safety building. Area Agency on Aging Director Deb Sanderson told members of the Health and Human Services Committee yesterday that kitchen staff workers could be helping each other respectively, but don’t.

“Sounds like you’re still having territorial problems,” longtime committee member Robert D. Briggs, R-Afton, said.

In March, Chenango County Sheriff Thomas J. Loughren told the Public Safety Committee the prison population would soon begin eating food collectively purchased and meals cooked together with the agency’s staff. Sanderson said yesterday, however, she had not spoken to the Sheriff about consolidation recently.

Area Agency on Aging uses the facility’s kitchen on weekdays to prepare take-out lunches for its 60-Plus Nutrition Program. The 250 to 400 hot meals prepared are reimbursed by federal, state and local sources depending on factors such as the county’s senior population, overall population and other demographics.

Up to 100 prisoners are fed three meals a day, seven days a week at the Public Safety Facility. In addition, about 55 corrections employees are served at any given time.

“It’s not surprising that there would be territorial problems,” Sanderson said. “They work together well most of the time. But, there are big differences in what we are doing,” she said, pointing to the timing of meals, menu selections, use of equipment and storage space needs.

The matter came before lawmakers yesterday upon Sanderson’s request to refill a food service manager position. It was the second time in two years the department director asked for a kitchen worker position to be filled and the second time town supervisors hesitated.