Supervisors consider applying dust control on Walton Road

Jefferson County Board of Supervisors agreed to dust-proof Walton Road in the near future, even though it?s not on the rotational schedule for work now, they hadn?t clarified which funds to use or what the county?s share of cost would be.

John Dahl attended Monday?s board meeting to follow-up his request for better dust control on the road.

?We have the law enforcement shooting range out there and we have the other shooting range,? said Dahl. ?Sheriff Deputy Gregg Morton conducts law enforcement practice out there and he says the dust is so bad, it burns their eyes.

?We have a special event coming up July 7 at the Southeast Iowa Skeet Club. All new shooters in Iowa are invited to Fairfield?s shooting range. Then the next day, July 8, we?ll have about 150 kids from all over Iowa, and their families, converge here to shoot.?

Dahl said the road gets used a lot.

?People drive in from Salina Road and come into town on Walton Road,? he said. ?I?d like to see the dust problem down.?

Supervisor Dick Reed reiterated there is ?the law enforcement gun range, a golf course and what I still think of as the Izaac Walton League range.

?It?s always difficult talking about dust-proofing a road, because as soon as we do one place, someone else is going to want it, too.

?But I consider this as being a part of economic development,? said Reed. ?It?s the only way I can justify dust-proofing when asked, if it?s in front of a business. I can see using funds for that.?

Dahl said the range has regular users coming from Mount Pleasant, Coralville and further away.

?And that [women?s] golf Blast-Off is coming this week,? he said.

Reed said since part of the road borders the city, the supervisors could see if the city can help with the costs to dust-proof the road.

?And we?re talking about less than a mile?s worth,? said supervisor Lee Dimmitt.

County engineer Tom Goff said it?s about a half-mile of road that?s under discussion.

?In the past, we had cooperation with the city to control the dust,? said Goff.

Reed said since economic development ?hits all taxpayers, I can see paying for this out of economic development funds.?

Supervisor chairman Steve Burgmeier said it should be paid out of the general fund.

In other news, Goff reported the pond project on 137th Street has been completed, costing $22,000. Seeding in the area will still be done.

Salina Road is scheduled for patching and seal coating, using boiler slag instead of lime chip.

?Kudos for using boiler slag,? said Reed. ?It was used on Jasmine Avenue and Airport Road. Residents like it because it looks more like paving; lines painted on it are better seen. What?s the price difference in using boiler slag versus lime chips??

Goff said it?s more an availability issue than price.

?There?s not much price difference,? he said. ?Application cost less with boiler slag.?

The supervisors approved hiring Brandon Dimmitt part time to work with the county conservation starting at $9 per hour. Supervisor Lee Dimmitt abstained from the vote, but noted, ?This is Brandon?s second season with the county, and they are glad to have him and work around his coaching schedule.?

Burgmeier said the conservation board is more independent than other county boards.

?We as supervisors have no authority over the conservation board, but we approve hires like this so it goes in the archives,? he said.

The board reviewed changes in the county employees handbook. Burgmeier suggested the retirement clause be amended to include the unexpected death of an employee and retirement benefits, if all criteria for retirement are otherwise met.

?It makes it easier for family members filing,? he said.

During committee reports, Reed told about his tour of the Lee County Juvenile Detention facility and the new state prison under construction near Fort Madison.

?The new prison expects to open in one year with 860 beds,? he said. ?It?s flat depressing to visit such places. We need to figure out a better way ... so we not needing to house so many prisoners.?

Dimmitt said he attended the case management consortium for mental health and it is reviewing the issue of forcing counties to sign 28E agreements.

A new design of delivering mental health services, mandated by the state, will cost a lot of money, Dimmitt predicts.

?We are at 100 percent of our tax levy for mental health now,? he said. ?And we extended the decision for 90 days, so we had to extend our insurance coverage for 90 days and that cost us another $1,000.?

Burgmeier reported the Rural Service Utility Systems signed a contract with rural Powdertown in Lee County. Burgmeier serves as Jefferson County?s representative on the RUSS board.