County Commission Targets Landowners with Brush Letters

The Worth County Commission will send letters of violation to various landowners who they say need to clean up their brush as specified in the brush law passed by voters. Among landowners who will get letters include Patrick Parrott (Road #75), Eric Baguson (#66-67), Delbert Gabbert (#67), Ed Costin, Joyce Richmond, and Jeff Carpenter (#126), Charles Panigot (#163), and LeRoy Carroll (#62, 66, & 67). Rob Ruckman said that he had gotten a lot of complaints about Road #170 as well and the county will send out letters of violation as soon as they can determine ownership of the adjacent land. The road east of Summa's has been resolved with landowners cutting their brush to come into compliance with the brush ordinance. Commissioners said that it would be a good idea to target all of the landowners along one road when necessary so that people would not feel like they were being targeted. Commissioner Rob Ruckman said that people who did not comply with the ordinance could result the commission doing it for them and then assessing it on their taxes.

Commissioner Dennis Gabbert said he feared that parking would become an issue now that work has started on the south side of the Square and the west side remains closed.

The elevator was working this morning; however, commissioners are continuing to try to set up a meeting with elevator personnel to discuss electrical problems with the elevator.

The county has around $34,000 left in the CART Fund this month. The county transferred $2,000 from other sources.

The agreement between the county and the Missouri Department of Conservation regarding the road south of Denver was discussed. The MDC advised the county that they would pay for their gravel under the contract this year but that since the contract required delivery by June 1st and it did not get done last year, next time it would not. Ruckman suggested writing a letter requesting more funds since prices have gone up but the MDC's share has not. Commissioners also wanted the MDC to put money on roads leading to their lands; for instance, Road #180 east of the Conservation area needs more grading and has a standing water issue.

FEMA has allowed $14,000 more money from prior projects that the county has done. It must now be audited before it can be released to the county.

Clerk Roberta Owens said that FEMA had told the county from day one that they would not allow for gravel for this year's snowstorm.

Assessor Carolyn Hardy is still checking on the feasibility of getting a GIS system for her office.

Commissioner Rob Ruckman said that he wanted to check on other banks to see if they would give better interest rates than Great Western. "I want to keep our money here locally, but we have to go with what the best deal for the county is," said Ruckman. Treasurer Linda Brown went and checked with other banks and got interest rate quotes for the county. "It's not like we're sending the money to New York," added Gabbert. Among the banks they checked with were BTC, Farmer's Bank, and Bank Northwest.

Representatives from Windstream came to discuss wiring issues with the commissioners. The commission wants to move as much of the wiring as possible underground.

Commissioners also met with Earl Schrock about the side entrances to the Courthouse. They said they wanted to get them to where they would match as close as possible. The commission voted to authorize Schrock to repair the flat porch roof on the south side of the Courthouse. An elbow pipe had ice damage which caused a leak from the side.

Landscaping of the Courthouse was discussed. Clerk Roberta Owens said she knew of a trim grant that would help, but it has to be turned in on June 1st, meaning that if they were to pursue it, some of the work would have to wait until next year. She said that she wanted to put in some shrubs and flowers.

The bridge south of Allendale will close under the Safe and Sound Program; Route T north of Allendale will close May 31st and Route PP will close in August. Discussion centered around what roads north of Allendale would be eligible since motorists could just as likely use the Allendale Cemetery road as well as the Cook road, which has had problems of its own. Under the program which the commission approved, it would cost around $116.50 for 16 tons of gravel since the county is matching 100%. It could be more based on what kind of gravel is ordered. Ruckman said that he would check on getting a better deal for the program since it was not a regular occurrence.

Road and Bridge Foreman Jim Fletchall reported that more material was delivered to the New Hope Bridge and that he hoped to get done in a week.

Discussion returned to landscaping plans for the Courtyard. Gabbert said that he wanted to get a tree trimmed so that they could move some of the wiring underground. Terry Sheddrick had agreed to help remove the brush. He said that the county wanted to remove the Chinese Elms that were in the Courtyard; he said that they were not going to clearcut all the trees at once, but remove a few at a time.

A Denver resident came to the meeting to discuss a clogged drain that created a stool flushing problem. She said that the problem was created by county personnel working under the direction of the City of Denver while doing tube work around the town. She was told to go to the City of Denver first.

Ongoing problems with the elevator were discussed. The Elevator Company had to approve the converter before it was put in the elevator; therefore, commissioners said that it was the company's responsibility to help get the issue resolved. Normally, it works, but every once in a while, the elevator quits. One theory is that the current voltage is not correct; the other is that the elevator motor might be sucking too much juice.