Mid-States Materials wants to expand quarry
Mid-States Materials plans to expand its rock quarry near Denison, but the Jackson County Commissioners want a few concerns with the quarry addressed before a special use permit is issued to the company for the expansion.
Rich Eckert, Cole Anderson and Chad Gerhardt of Mid-State Materials recently met with the commissioners to discuss the company expanding the quarry at 142nd and W Roads.
County resident Mark Pruett, Jackson County Appraiser Kate Immenschuh and County Counselor Lee Hendricks were also present.
Eckert said the quarry site is doing very well, and the business is selling material fast. The quarry, which encompasses more than 100 acres, opened in February of 2020, and the company wants to expand to the southeast, it was reported.
Chairperson Ed Kathrens said the county has put a lot of money into the haul route for the quarry and that the county would be more eager to do business with the quarry if the county received a price break for materials.
Kathrens added that the new Hamm quarry near Soldier offers material to the county at a discounted rate.
Eckert said that the pricing is affected by the amount of overburden or cover they have to work with to get to the rock. The rock at the Denison site is much deeper than the company had planned, and it has been a major problem to work with, he said.
Commissioners Keith Kelly and Dan Brenner added that they would like additional rock for maintenance or something for the cost to rebuild the road to benefit heavy trucks.
Eckert said that the production costs are driving the rates, and this site is the quickest expansion they have done.
The commissioners, Hendricks and Mid-States Materials are working together on creating a new road agreement between the county and the company regarding maintenance of the haul route and rock prices before the county approves the special use permit to allow the quarry to expand.
In other business, according to the approved minutes from May 31, the commission:
* Met with Immenschuh who provided the commissioners with information on the county zoning regulations that prohibit living in a temporary structure and the use of portable toilets.
She also discussed the collection of insurance premiums for properties with fire damages and how to sell one with conditions of demolition.
* Discussed the contract drafts for ambulance services with Hendricks.
* Met in executive session for 10 minutes with Hendricks to discuss a matter of attorney/client privilege to discuss contract negotiations. No action was taken back in open session.
* Met in executive session for 13 minutes with Hendricks and Immenschuh to discuss a matter of attorney/client privilege. No action was taken back in open session.
* Received an update from Hendricks on the camper left at the lake. Hendricks published a notice in The Holton Recorder about the abandoned property.
He also discussed the interview process for the community corrections positions, its office remodel and a nuisance resolution he drafted.
* Met with Eric Fritz, road and bridge superintendent, who discussed a road pipe that caved in on a property owner’s entrance on 238th Road.
The rain also caused another pipe failure at 150th Road between C and D Roads, Fritz said.
Commissioner Kelly asked why there weren’t any blades out on Friday, May 27, and Fritz said that many of the blade operators were on vacation.
Commissioner Kelly asked that Fritz not allow so many employees off on one day leaving only one operator.
Commissioner Kathrens said that, in his opinion, the road and bridge department employees show the least amount of respect to the commissioners, and Commissioner Kelly agreed.
Fritz stated that this crew is the best team he has had, and he is not experiencing the same issues. He will relay the message to his employees that the commissioners would appreciate a team effort.
* Approved the new employee handbook as presented.
* Left the Courthouse to view the broken entrance pipe at 238th Road.
* Discussed the 2023 budget with Jackson County Clerk Kathy Mick. The commissioners expressed interest in adjusting the income to be more accurate for the sheriff’s office and Banner Creek Reservoir rather than amending the budget later.
They also reviewed the submitted budget requests from the appraiser, register of deeds, treasurer, district court, county clerk and emergency management departments. The departments heads all requested the same budget as last year in addition to salary increases for their staff.
* Met with Jeff Morrow, the newly appointed county attorney to discuss the duties of his position and salary.
Morrow said that the current salary of $90,000 is equivalent to other jobs available that are closer to his residence and have a lighter workload. The board agreed to offer him the same salary as the former county attorney and congratulated him on his new position.
* Adjourned the meeting at 4:37 p.m. All three commissioners were present.
