Commissioners hold May 9 meeting

The Lincoln County Commissioners met Tuesday, May 9 in the Lincoln County Boardroom.

Highway Superintendent Terry Fluit joined the meeting to discuss control signs.

“There was an email thread going around about a week ago from a Barb Koopman, I believe, up by Spring Creek Golf Course, she’s concerned that people are running stop signs up there, it is a four-way controlled intersection on County Road 106 and County Road 135. She had sent an email to Sheriff Swenson about their people running the stop signs and he cc’d me on the email, I said that I would have to look into it and as I did about a week and a half ago, I’ve come to find out that we do not have rumble strips on County Road 135 and we didn’t put them on there back when we paved it three years ago, just for the fact that we have noise complaints with them and I think that was an issue you took up six or eight years ago too as well,” Fluit said.

Upon further investigation of the area, the Highway Department will be putting in rumble strips on County Road 135 to make people more aware of the stop signs.

“These are a safety device and if people aren’t aware, hopefully this will help. I also have the single beacon flashing red lights that we have ordered, but haven’t heard of a time frame on delivery,” Fluit said.

No board action was required for the changes.

Fluit’s next order of business was to have the board authorize a haul road agreement with SiteWorks, Inc., for structure 42-113-060 on 274th Street.

“This is on Township Gravel Road 274th Street directly south of the City of Harrisburg. The City has a sewer project that is going to be going along this corridor on 274 and they’re going to be hauling a lot of equipment material across this structure so we did a haul road and I did an inspection on this structure about a month ago. I got the report back, sent it off to them, and we got a haul road agreement that we want to get signed with the contractor, SiteWorks, which I believe they have already signed,” Fluit said.

Commissioner Tiffani Landeen requested board action to create an Ad Hoc Committee for Planning and Zoning regarding a CO2 Pipeline.

“This was taken off the agenda a few meetings ago, that’s why we’re seeing it back on here now, the committee would consist of Wendy Hogan, Jerry Jongeling, Tiffani Landeen, James Jibben, and legal counsel from the Lincoln County State’s Attorney’s office,” she said.

Commissioner Joel Arends asked Chairman Landeen if there was a reason that Planning and Zoning couldn’t flush this out on their own. Terry Golden was asked to respond to the question.

“The rationale for it was it needed to be a smaller, tighter group because there was a lot of redrafting that needed to take place on the ordinance and so that was what they did, was table it in order to have a little bit more nimble of a group that can get together, redraft it, and then take it back in front of the Planning and Zoning before it comes back to the Commission,” Golden said.

A resident of Hudson joined the public comment portion to voice his opinion. “Do to the inaction of the Commission, I filed a new application this morning at 8:10 a.m. before you made your decision, I encourage you to send this back to Planning and Zoning and lets see if they can hash this out together because I think the inaction of the board up here and the timely fashion that’s drug out so long, lets see if the Planning and Zoning can do their jobs and then come back forward in front of the Commission, thank you,” he said.

Commissioner Arends: no, Commission Poppins: abstain, Commissioner Schmidt: yes, Commissioner Landeen: yes.

Commissioner Landeen stated they have closed on two properties and she would like an actual vote that it is going to be the location for the new courthouse site.

The location for the Lincoln County Justice Center will be located at the location described as the North half of the Southeast Quarter of the Southeast Quarter (N1/2SE1/4SE1/4) of Section Fifteen (15), Township Ninety- Eight (98) North, Range Forty-Nine (49) west of the 5th P.M., Lincoln County, South Dakota, according to the government survey thereof, a/k/a parcel number 098.49.15.4040. And The South Half of the Northeast Quarter of the Southeast Quarter ((S1/2NE1/4SE1/4), (Except the North 20 feet of the East 300 feet thereof), Section 15, Township 98, Range 49 West of the 5th P.M., Lincoln County, South Dakota, according to the government survey thereof, a/k/a parcel number 098.49.15.4011.

“Madam Chair, I would so move on appointing our new Justice Center to be on the two tracks of land which are west of Canton, I don’t know the names of those two properties, but I would ask that to be officially our new site,” said Commissioner Jim Schmidt.

The Commission closed on the properties on April 28. With no public comment, motion passed.