Government : Supervisor Minutes May 11, 2010

May 11, 2010

The Benton County Board of Supervisors met in regular adjourned session with Supervisors Buch, Vermedahl, and Sanders present. Chairman Sanders called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch, to set Tuesday June 8th, 2010, at 9:15 a.m., as the time and date for a public hearing on a land use change requested by Shawn Golden on a parcel located in a part of the N½ SW¼ of Section 15-83-9. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch to abate penalty and cost on parcel numbers 740-12600 and 840-02450. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Moved by Buch, seconded by Vermedahl to abate taxes on parcels 030-49400 and 030-14800 pursuant to Iowa Code 445.63 requested by the City of Belle Plaine. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Marc Greenlee presented an application for a farm exemption submitted by Paul and Stephanie Vogeler. Vogelers currently own approximately 40 acres located in N1/4 of SE ¼ of section 2-82-10. Approximately 34 Acres will remain in corn/soybean rotation, the remainder with be for a residential dwelling. Moved by Buch, seconded by Vermedahl, to approve a farm exemption as provided for in the Benton County Agricultural Land Use Preservation Ordinance for a single residential use on a parcel described as being a part of the N1/4 of the SE1/4 of Section 2-82-10. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Jerry Petermeier, Project Coordinator for the new Law Enforcement Center gave an update on its progress to the Board. Construction has begun and they are currently digging in preparation for the footings to be poured, weather permitting.

Moved by Buch, seconded by Vermedahl, to approve checks numbered 121292 through 121595, including payroll, and ACH deposits numbered 8338 through 8446, for payment. It is noted that checks numbered 121515 and 121516 were voided due to paper jam in printer. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Moved by Buch, seconded by Vermedahl to approve Resolution #10-32, Approve John Mayhew as Grade Working Foreman. Voting aye were Vermedahl, Buch and Sanders. Nays None. Motion carried.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch to approve Resolution #10-33, Road Closing on part of 22nd Ave. Voting aye were Vermedahl, Buch and Sanders. Nays None. Motion carried.

Motion by Buch, seconded by Vermedahl to hire Donovan Merchant at $9.85 an hour and Bob Beyers at $10.10 an hour for seasonal part-time truck drivers for roadside spraying. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch to approve Resolution #10-34, Service Area Budget Amendment. Voting aye were Vermedahl, Buch and Sanders. Nays None. Motion carried.

Ron Boyer met with the board regarding some questions he had with the county’s current land use policy. He referred to a land use change that was made in 1998 on a 2-acre parcel that was for non-agriculture use and now has recently been foreclosed on. He questioned whether the board would still look at the CSR in determining their decision if a new land use change will be requested on that same parcel. Without researching the previous land use change and its situation, the board couldn’t answer.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch, to approve the Veterans Affairs quarterly report for the period ending December 31, 2010. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Sheriff Forsyth met with the board to discuss 3 new patrol vehicles for the Sheriff’s office. He currently has it in this fiscal years budget to pay for the new vehicles but he didn’t meet the ordering deadlines and was requesting to carry those funds over into the next fiscal year. One is to be paid out of Rural Basic and the other two out of the General Fund. Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch to allow for the carry over of the funds until the next fiscal year to allow more time to receive bids for the new patrol vehicles. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Benton County Conservation Director Will Heber, Conservation Board member Bob Mahood and Kathy Tranel, Realtor met with the board to further discuss the purchase of property to be utilized as a nature center. Heber presented the architect’s drawing of the proposed plan for the nature center. The estimated cost of the renovated project is $470,000 including the septic system that will need brought up to date within 30 days of sale. The purchase price of the property itself is to be no more then $270,000 plus tax prorated and closing costs. The conservation department plans to pay for the property and renovations through the Kerkman Estate, which funds will become available after July 1, 2010. The Conservation Board currently has a fundraising committee started and Heber states that people are willing to donate but are skeptical until the property is secure. They presented a purchase agreement between the Benton County Conservation Board and the Natural Heritage Foundation. It was at first thought to be interest free for the first year but now its estimated with a 5.25 APR with 20% of the purchase price to be the down payment due within 30 days of the real estate contract and the balance to be paid in four equal annual installments of principal and interest.

David Thompson, County Attorney questioned the last time they’ve increased camping fees, if that would be an option to help fund the improvements. Also suggesting how the Auditor could possibly do something similar to an ESCROW account for funding for Conservation. Try to not rely on only using the LOST funds to pay for the project and get it paid back within a 5-year plan. He agreed that LOST money is a good guarantee to fall back on but would rather they didn’t rely on that. Sanders said he is in favor of them trying to collect donations for the project. Supervisor Buch asked about if the county fronted the funds in one lump amount for example using a mortgage to pay for the Nature Center and all other unfinished projects. Try to give them a fresh start after that money is re-paid instead of relying on the LOST funds to get them by. Sanders felt leery on that idea, while Thompson states you can’t expect to do everything at once, just as it is with a personal budget, we have to set priorities and stick with them. Vermedahl is concerned with how they will fund their every day expenses. Once the project is done, how will they go about supporting it out of their yearly budget? He feels they need to find the best option, discuss with the Auditor, if she could do some research about getting loan quotes with less APR and see what other options we have and put this back on the agenda for next week to discuss further before making any decisions. Thompson asked that the Conservation Board present a proposal in writing to the board describing their fundraising goals. The board agreed they were in favor of the project but not in favor of the agreement with the Heritage Foundation at this time.

Moved by Buch, seconded by Vermedahl, to acknowledge the receipt and filing of the annual manure management plan submitted by RNK Farms LLC, for the facility located at 2907 62nd Street Trail, Shellsburg, Iowa. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch to approve the minutes of May 4,2010. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

Discussion on the animal control officer was put back on the agenda for next week. Waiting for some answers regarding liability issues with the individuals insurance.

Mary Halstead, Transportation Director asked for suggestions since she hasn’t received any responses for the ad to hire part time drivers.

Moved by Vermedahl, seconded by Buch, to adjourn. All members voting aye thereon. Motion carried.

_______________________________

Jason Sanders, Chairman

ATTEST: _________________________________

Hayley Rippel, Deputy Auditor