Below are highlights from County Administrator Richard Boeckman’s departmental update delivered during the Monday morning County Commission meeting:
County Engineer Barry McManaman
• Exchanged information and discussed possible gas and communication line adjustments for a bridge east of Great Bend.
• Reviewed right of way and easement documents and flagged locations for landowners on a bridge east of Great Bend.
• Reviewed KDOT supplemental agreements for the Cheyenne Bottoms scenic overlook tower projects on K-4 east of Hoisington.
Road and Bridge Director Dale Phillips
Road and Bridge:
• Hauled sand to storage lots.
• Cleaned silt out of channels and one low water crossing.
• Performed asphalt work on the intersections of both north and south of McKinley. This work is part of a future asphalt overlay project.
• Asphalt mixing, sand pumping, sign and service work continued.
Noxious Weed:
• Spraying continued as needed.
Solid Waste Manager Phil Hathcock
In the last reporting period, the Barton County Landfill took in:
• 911 tons of municipal solid waste
• 381 tons of construction/demolition waste
• 193 tons of special waste
• 205 loads of waste received for disposal
• $53,600.43 of revenue generated through disposal fees
Barton County Solid Waste Director Phil Hathcock would like to remind residents that the regularly scheduled HHW collections started last weekend. These collections will continue every third Saturday of the month through October.
The landfill has many good reuse items that have been recycled through the HHW program. Anyone can stop by and see if they can use any of these items that are available at no cost.
Visit www.bartoncounty.org for a listing of accepted items at the collections.
For questions regarding recycling, household hazardous waste, or regular household waste, call the Landfill at 620-793-1898.
County Treasurer Kevin Wondra
The Treasurer’s Office processed a total of 1,223 motor vehicle transactions between April 7 and April 20. Of those, 825 were renewals for vehicles and 262 were new titles. In the past two weeks, staff renewed or registered 14 Commercial vehicles.
Personnel are still attempting to clear up delinquent properties to avoid sale in October. At this time there are 85 tracts on the tax sale.
The bookkeepers are in the process of reconciling the bank accounts. All daily work is current.
Stories that have played out on the statewide and nationwide level were topics when the Barton County Local Emergency Planning Committee, sponsored by Barton County Emergency Management, held its second quarterly meeting of 2016 on Tuesday, April 12.
Deb Tucker, disaster program manager, Central and Western Kansas Chapter of the American Red Cross, gave an impromptu presentation and provided details on the American Red Cross response to the recent spate of wildland fires in Kansas. The agency worked with the First Christian Church of Great Bend to provide hot meals and sack lunches for those involved in the disaster.
Turning to the national arena, Barton County Health Department Director Shelly Schneider gave a short report on the zika virus. she said the Centers for Disease Control is recommending the same precautions as for West Nile virus.
Zika has been reported in most states, including at least one confirmed case in Kansas.
Other business included:
• Dennis Neeland, Great Bend Coop operations manager, who discussed the safety management plans currently in place at the Great Bend Co-op and its locations in Barton County.
He reviewed the chemicals covered under SARA Title III which are stored at several Great Bend Co-op locations. He also detailed several agencies that inspect the facilities for safety. These included the Kansas Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency, and Occupation Safety and Health Administration. Neeland also provided the committee with examples of safety training for hazards specific to the grain industry.
• County Emergency Risk Manager Amy Miller provided a report on Severe Weather Week activities in Barton County, a review of the list of facilities and businesses that submitted Tier Ii chemical reports to the Committee, and a review of the U.S. Drought Monitor report for Barton County as of April 5.
