Gage County Newsletter

By Don Schuller 9/30/24 Committee MeetingPlanning and Zoning Administrator Lisa Wiegand reported to the board the results of Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission’s public hearings conducted on Sept. 24th. P & Z voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Nextlink tower in Island Grove Township, one and one quarter miles west of Liberty, and the class two solar farm in Elm Township. The Viaero cell tower in Filley Township was recommended for approval with a 5 to 2 vote of the P & Z Commission.I attended the P & Z public hearings. There was no opposition to the Nextlink tower or the solar farm. There were questions about road usage from township representatives. People spoke in support of both.People objecting to Viaero’s cell tower expressed concerns about potential health and environmental issues. P & Z Commissioner Terry Acton preferred to table the vote to allow time to read up on environmental impacts. Assistant County Attorney Dvorak read to the board the state statute saying a special use permit cannot be denied due to environmental issues. Commissioner Jeff Argo said why table it when the law says it cannot be denied for environmental impacts. Motion to recommend approval by Commissioner Dennis Rosene, seconded by Argo. Motion was approved with Commissioner James Leners and Acton voting no.Highway Superintendent Mark Kuhnke reported the East Pickrell box culvert’s walls were poured Sept 20th.I asked Kuhnke about the two miles of hard surface road from Highway 136 south two miles on 94th Road, near Rockford. I have driven it and there was no chat rock remaining on the road, leaving the many chuck holes exposed. He has not heard from Game and Parks in regard to their financial assistance. This was requested approximately ten years ago. The county decided to fund the north/south portion but not the east/west portion to the boat dock on Rockford Lake. The core samples on 94th road were worse than expected. The county will be taking bids to patch, mill and overlay, with plans to complete next spring.Kuhnke provided the supervisors with traffic count records on black top roads of priority to overlay and gravel roads to hard surface. The counts will assist in completing grant applications. I asked when 162nd road past Virginia would have a count. He said he is moving that direction, as he gets counts on other roads with the counting equipment. It could be two to four weeks. I encouraged him to do it sooner. It would be good to get the harvest traffic included in the count to help it look better for the grant application.Supervisor Eddie Dorn said truck traffic is heavy on the Filley Adams road. Trucks are traveling to E-Energy by Adams. This road was overlayed in 2013. He warned the board that this road may need attention sooner than planned. 10/2/24 Regular meeting:Wiegand informed the board public hearings for the Elm Township class two solar farm and the City of Beatrice well head protection area expansion are scheduled during the regular meeting Oct. 30th, 9:15 and 9:45 a.m., respectively. No date has been set for the public hearings for the Viaero and Nextlink towers.The board considered a lease of ground from the City of Beatrice. This ground is an open lot near the highway department which the county uses for temporary storage for highway department materials. A motion to approve by Dorn, seconded by Supervisor Dave Swavely, passed unanimously.The board considered a three-year agreement between the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Gage County for forensic and crime lab testing. A motion to approve by me, seconded by Swavely, passed unanimously.Snow removal bids for winter of 24-25 were closed. Only one bid was received, from Beatrice Lawn Care. Supervisor Erich Tiemann, for full disclosure, stated he is part owner of this company. A motion to approve by Dorn, seconded by Supervisor Gary Lytle, carried 6-0 with Tiemann abstaining. This highlights the portions of the county meetings I feel are most relevant to my constituents. Use the link below to view the actual minutes and hear audio of the board meeting, when posted.https://gagecountynebraska.us/board_meetings/enhanced_minutes.aspxFacebook: Don Schuller – Public Servant.

Robert Leroy Casper

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