NOTICE OF MEETING
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN
that the Regular meeting of the Otoe County Commissioners of
AGENDA OF THE NEXT MEETING October
28, 2008
meeting, Audit
and Sign payroll and regular claims
8:35 a.m. – Dave Schmitz, Zoning
Administrator: Discussion and/or action RE: An application for construction
And operating permit being made by Action Pig Co.
Public
Hearing: Oberle Subdivision located in S8-T9-R9 at
the request of Susanne Johnson
Public
Hearing: Conditional Use Permit for 60-M Met Tower located in the W ½ of the NW
¼ S22-T7-R10 as requested by Keith & Russell Moss and Midwest Wind Energy
Development Group
Public Hearing: Conditional Use
Permit for 60-M Met Tower located in the S ½ of the NW ¼ S36-T8-R9
As requested by Kenneth Hartman and Midwest Wind Energy
Development Group
8:45 a.m. – Gregg Goebel, EM Director:
Discussion and/or action RE: NEMA audit
9:00 a.m. – Rick Sedersten, Custodian:
Discussion and/or action RE: Quote for tuck pointing Courthouse
9:15 a.m. -- Discussion and/or action RE:
Other Road and Bridge matters
a) Discussion
and/or action RE: Resolution to set public hearing date for vacation of
A
portion of
b) Miscellaneous
Other business matters to address when
time allows:
Discussion
and/or action to appoint an alternate who may vote at the NACO Convention
Discussion
and/or action RE: Renewal of a Detention Services Agreement with the
Discussion
and/or action RE: Results of recall petitions for Dale Haverty
Miscellaneous Correspondence and other matters that may
come before the Board
Janene Bennett, Otoe
The
Individuals requiring
physical or sensory accommodations, including interpreter service, Braille,
large print or recorded materials, please contact Janene
Bennett,
October 28, 2008
The Otoe County Board of Commissioners convened in regular session at
8:30 a.m. on October 28, 2008 to audit and sign payroll claims and regular
claims and to take care of such other matters as are on the agenda for this
meeting. Advance notice of this meeting
was published in the Nebraska City News Press and Syracuse Journal Democrat,
announced on the local radio station KNCY and posted in the
The meeting was called to order by the Chairman of the Board, Dale Haverty. Answering present at roll call were Commissioner Haverty, Commissioner Kreifels and Commissioner Schroder.
Commissioner Schroder made a motion, seconded
by Commissioner Kreifels to accept the agenda as posted but to add discussion
regarding the condition of a bridge located on I Road between Unadilla and
Commissioner Schroder made a motion, seconded
by Commissioner Kreifels to accept the minutes from the previous meeting as
mailed to them as each member was furnished with a copy of same. There being no
discussion, Chairman Haverty called for a vote by
roll call. Voting – Commissioners Kreifels, aye; Schroder,
aye; Haverty, aye. Motion carried.
Commissioner Schroder made a motion, seconded
by Commissioner Kreifels to audit and sign payroll claims and regular claims
unless otherwise noted. There being no further discussion, Chairman Haverty called for a vote by roll call. Voting -
Commissioners Schroder, aye; Haverty
aye; Kreifels, aye. Motion carried.
Chairman Haverty informed the public in
attendance that a current copy of the Open Meetings Act is posted on the south
wall of the Courtroom. Additional copies
are available upon request. He asked that all attendees turn off their cell
phones or set them to vibrate while present in the meeting room.
Dave Schmitz, Zoning Administrator, came before the Board to report that
Action Pig Inc has submitted an application to the Department of Environmental
Quality for a Construction and Operating Permit in accordance with DEQ
“Livestock Waste Control Regulations”. Dean Neels,
President of Action Pig, told Schmitz that they need to modify their pig
operation because they are going to raise heavier hogs and will need larger
pens. They plan to add 30 feet to an existing building. Schmitz said he
reviewed the application and saw no problems with it. He notified Neels that he needed a Certificate of Compliance filed with
him in order to meet the County’s zoning regulations. As part of standard
procedures, the
A public hearing was held for the purpose of hearing support or
objections to the approval of a plat map for Oberle Farm
Subdivision located in the E ½ of the W ½ Section 8 and the SW ¼ of the NE ¼
Section 8, all in T9-R9. Dave Schmitz, representing Susanne Johnson, said there
is an existing farm site that is divided by County Road 3. The house is located
on one side of the road and the outbuildings are on the other side. He could
not make the subdivision into one tract, so it is separated into two lots – Lot
1 consists of 2.02 acres on the west side of the road and Lot 2 consists of 7.98
acres on the east side of the road. The two added together make 10 acres. The
plat includes an easement so that the rural water line can be shared in both
lots. Currently, a well is the primary source of water. There being no further
comments, Chairman Haverty closed the public hearing.
Commissioner Schroder made a motion, seconded by
Commissioner Haverty to authorize Chairman Haverty to sign the plat map for Oberle
Farm Subdivision located in S8-T9-R9 as requested by owner, Susanne Johnson. Voting
– Commissioners Haverty, aye; Kreifels, aye; Schroder, aye. Motion carried.
A public hearing was held for the purpose of hearing support or
objections to the issuance of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) that would allow
the installation of a 60-M Met Tower in the W ½ of the NW ¼ S22-T7-R10 at the
request of Keith & Russell Moss and Midwest Wind Energy Development Group.
David Levy, representing Midwest Energy, said the structure was a meteorological
tower that will be installed to gather wind data specific to that area. The
tower is 196’ tall and 6” in diameter with instruments on top to gather
information. Its installation was approved by the County Planning Commission
with the stipulation that it could remain there up to 5 years. Mr. Levy distributed
site plans to the Board members. The wind data is being monitored in
anticipation that a wind farm may be established in this area. Commissioner Schroder questioned how or if the towers would be taxed.
After checking with the
A public hearing was held to hear support or objections to the issuance
of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) that would allow the installation of a 60-M
Met Tower in the S ½ of the NW ¼ S36-T8-R9 at the request of Kenneth Hartman
and Midwest Wind Energy Development. Mr. Levy said this structure is the same
type of meteorological tower as the one described above and is being installed
for the same purpose – to collect wind data in that vicinity to see if there
would be enough activity to generate a wind turbine. Commissioner Schroder noted that the Planning Commission approved the
CUP with the stipulations that there be an 8’ chain link fence around the tower
and guy wires would be attached to 16’ poles so as not to interfere with
farming. Levy said it would cost about $75,000 each to install the towers. There
being no other comments or questions, Chairman Haverty
closed the public hearing. Commissioner Schroder made
a motion, seconded by Commissioner Kreifels to approve issuance of a
Conditional Use Permit to Kenneth Hartman and Midwest Wind Energy Development
Group allowing them to install a 60-M Met Tower in the S ½ of the NW ¼
S36-T8-R9. Voting – Commissioners Schroder, aye; Haverty, aye;
Kreifels, aye. Motion carried.
Schmitz said he handed out packets of information to the Planning Commission
at their October 16th meeting that included wind power regulations
from surrounding counties and states. He also had information regarding
problems and negative aspects caused by wind towers. He plans to conduct a
joint meeting with the Planning Commission and
Gregg Goebel, Emergency Management Director, said a Program Specialist
from NEMA conducted an audit of the Homeland Security Grant Funds on September
10, 2008. His objective was to ensure the County’s compliance with grant
regulations and requirements. The audit report indicated several areas that
needed improvement. Two primary areas of concern were deficiencies in the
accounting methods and inventory control. Goebel said he has now complied with
the suggested corrections and updates and will submit them at a review audit on
Thursday. In the past, all purchases were approved by the Otoe County
Communications Committee; however, NEMA recommends that they be approved by the
At the previous meeting, Rick Sedersten, Courthouse Custodian, was asked
to obtain a quote from Karr Tuckpointing Company for
restoring and repairing the masonry and brick work on the Courthouse. Bill
Clark with KARR Tuckpointing, gave a brief overview of the proposal as he had it broken
down into three work areas. Work Area #1 included removal of vines from the
exterior walls; power washing the building to remove surface dirt and to expose
any defective joints; tuck pointing damaged mortar joints; sealing movement
cracks; and caulking all windows. Work area #2 included restoration of the
stone trim around the Courthouse; filling cracks, caulking doors and windows;
patching approximately 8 sq feet of damaged stone; then applying a latex
masonry paint that will protect the stone from weather. Work area #3 included the
restoration of the winged step casings on the north side of the Courthouse. He
submitted 2 options – 1) to tuck point all joints, replace about 30 defective
bricks and relay about 500 bricks. Option 2) to remove and replace all the
bricks.
Glen Steffensmeier, County Highway Superintendent came before the Board
to discuss road and bridge matters.
One of the final steps for vacating a section of
A large group of concerned citizens from the
At 10:07 Chairman Haverty called for short
recess.
NACO (Nebraska Association of County Officials) will hold its annual
Convention on December 10th, 11th, and 12th. Since
Chairman Haverty is not planning to attend, an
alternate needs to be appointed who will have voting authority. Commissioner Schroder made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Haverty to appoint Commissioner Kreifels as alternate. There
being no further discussion, Chairman Haverty called
for a vote by roll call. Voting aye were Commissioners Haverty,
Kreifels, and Schroder. Nay – none. Motion carried.
By statute the County must have an interlocal
agreement in place with an institution that can provide juvenile detention
services.
Steffensmeier said he received a letter from
Steffensmeier said he has received many complaints that rock is needed
on Road R between Road 8 and
Commissioner Schroder said he had heard that a
motor grader operator was seen pulling the sheep foot roller behind a motor
grader across railroad tracks, 6 lanes of highway and down a paved city street.
He asked Steffensmeier if this employee
was talked to and Steffensmeier said no. Commissioner Schroder
asked Steffensmeier if he knew about the batteries that were purchased in
Steffensmeier presented a large color coded map that indicated possible
bridge projects for the FY09-10 One & Six Year Road Plan. He suggested taking
out bridges and replacing them with box culverts or corrugated metal culverts
when possible. 80% of the total cost of non-federal aid projects can be applied
toward soft match credit which then can be used to pay the County’s share of
federal aid projects.
As Election Commissioner, Janene Bennett reported
that a sufficient number of signatures were obtained and verified regarding the
recall petitions that were filed seeking the removal of Commissioner Dale Haverty from the office of 2nd District
Commissioner. By statute, the
There being no further business to come before the Board at this time,
and since all items on the agenda have been disposed of, Chairman Haverty adjourned the meeting at 11:06 a.m. The next regular
meeting will be held on November 10, 2008.
I, Janene Bennett, County Clerk of Otoe
County, do hereby certify that the above minutes were taken by me, and are true
and correct to the best of my knowledge, and I therefore set my hand and affix
the county seal this 14th day of October 2008.
Janene Bennett
Otoe