Routes in county?s farm-to-market system changing

The official farm-to-market system in Jefferson County may experience some changes before the year is out.

With the state transferring jurisdiction of Business 34 to the city and county later this year, Jefferson County Engineer Tom Goff is set to go before the state?s farm-to-market-review board. Before he meets with the board in the fall, the engineer?s office will be reviewing the entire local system to determine which routes should be added ? in addition to Business 34 ? and which should be removed.

During Monday?s meeting of the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors, Goff said he hopes to get 185th Street added to the list of routes. Crews have been patching the roadway, but Goff said he would like to see the surface completely reworked.

Right now, 185th Street is completely reliant on county dollars, but if the road could get added to the farm-to-market system, Goff explained it would become eligible for state funds.

The number of miles the county has in the system is used in the formula to determine the state funding each county receives. Goff said Jefferson County has around 250 miles in the system ? about one-third of the total miles in the county.

For the complete article, see the Tuesday, July 7, 2009, printed edition of The Fairfield Ledger.