Supervisors Approve Residential Building Ordinance #32
Mahaska County Board of Supervisors on September 2, 2014.
Oskaloosa, Iowa – This past week, the Mahaska County Board of Supervisors approved the latest version of the residential building ordinance. They held a public meeting before their vote, so the public could comment.
The ordinance will allow builders to utilize half-acre lots plus right-of-way, versus a proposed two acre lot. With the smaller lot size, as with any new builds, the proper septic system must be selected to be in compliance. Most smaller lots will require a mechanical septic system that will have a maintenance contract. The setback for septic discharge was also set in the ordinance.
The Supervisors waived the second and third reading of the ordinance.
Mahaska County remains a member of RUSS [Regional Utility Service Systems] and was seeking the approval of the Mahaska County Board of Supervisors over a proposed project in Lee County. The project would require bonding, and so all member counties would need to approve the resolution.
“My thoughts are, with some of the issues we’ve had with RUSS and where they stand as an organization, it’s probably not in the best interest of our tax payers to move forward,” said Mahaska County Supervisors Chairman Mike Vander Molen. “RUSS needs to look at alternatives and get to the point where they can self-fund instead of subsidizing from our county and other counties. I drafted a resolution disapproving that project.”
The Supervisors passed the resolution 3-0 as proposed by Vander Molen, which would disapprove the RUSS request.
The Supervisors also rejected bids for a project that would provide an overlay on a bridge located along Rutledge Avenue just south of Highway 23. Mahaska County Engineer Dave Shanahan said that the deck is in very poor condition on the surface. “Structurally wise, it’s in good shape,” added Shanahan.
The estimate to complete the overlay came in at 36% more than estimates of the project. Shanahan said that it is his opinion that the wood pilings would fail before the effective life of the overlay would pass. He said he would rather reject all bids, and wait until the bridge reaches the point that federal funds can then be utilized to replace the entire 51-year-old bridge. The point that federal dollars would kick in is at a rating of 50, and the bridge is currently rated a 74.
Another concern was the timing of the project. If the bridge was to be under construction at the time, it could potentially interfere with the harvest.
The Supervisors rejected all bids on the project.
Also approved was a contract for the Courthouse roof evaluation. This is another step in having the roof repaired after the April 27 storm that ripped many tiles from the roof. The Supervisors have spent considerable time having options on the repair evaluated. The measure passed 3-0.
