Jefferson County Commissioners on the move

by Dennis Sharkey

County commissioners were relatively quiet over the holidays but found time for a property tour.

First District Commissioner Lynn Luck said commissioners briefly met last Tuesday, Dec. 27, to sign vouchers and conduct a public hearing on amendments to the 2011 budget. She said no one from the public had comment.

Planning and Zoning Director Bill Noll also met with commissioners to set a hearing at 2:30 p.m. Jan. 9 for a sand dredging operation along the Kaw River just east of Lecompton Road.

The request for a conditional use permit was recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission and will involve about 205 acres of land.

On Wednesday, Dec. 28, commissioners took a brief tour of properties the county owns and did not sell in the last tax sale.

Luck said many of the properties are in bad shape and need to be secured. Most have been gutted by scavengers.

One of the properties toured was the old meat packing plant just west of Oskaloosa. Luck said the county has extra obstacles in selling the property. She said the building also has state and federal liens weighing.

Properties in the Lakeside Village campgrounds are also of a concern because scavengers are not only ransacking dwellings, there are reports that utility poles have been yanked down and stripped. Luck said the county owns so much property in the area that some roads may be closed.