Moore Lake Development road maintenance debated
by Samantha Heerdt - Staff writerFact Box
Arneson presents Dickinson report
by Samantha Heerdt
Staff writer
Shaun Arnseon from the Iowa Lakes Corridor gave the Dickinson County Board of Supervisors the results on the Industry Call Program. He said the interviews took place between January and April. Businesses in the industry, agriculture and service sectors were interviewed. This year, 37 employers in the four county region were interviewed, with 10 in Dickinson County.
Results from the 10 Dickinson County interviews are as follows:
n 1,269 total employees.
n Nine businesses own their facility.
n Six anticipate new products/services in the next two years.
n Six show increasing sales.
n Six plan to expand within the next three years.
n Total capitol investment is $2.7 million.
n Eight have maintained stable employment.
n 147 new jobs were added and none lost over the last three years.
n There are currently 22 unfilled positions.
SPIRIT LAKE - In a continued discussion at the Dickinson County Board of Supervisors meeting on maintenance of roads at Moore Lake Development Second Addition, county engineer Dan Eckert presented minutes from meetings in 1995 and 1996 when the development was platted.
Eckert said the agreement was for the road to be either 6 inches of concrete or 8 inches of asphalt. He said he believes it is 6 inches of asphalt. Current standards require the road to have 8 inches of asphalt. Eckert said he could bore it to determine how much more asphalt is needed. If only 2 inches are needed, he determined it would cost approximately $20,000.
Moore Lake resident Gail Vogel said the primary concern is snow removal. Currently the U-shaped section of the road she lives on does not receive any maintenance and the residents scoop it themselves. However, the road is the only access for several other residents. There is another turn around location on 182nd Street, but Vogel said it is very tight and most drivers use the "U" to turn around.
Supervisor Paul Johnson asked Eckert if there were plans for 182nd Street. The condition of the road is very poor, unlike the "U" which is in good condition, but needs more asphalt to comply with county standards. Eckert said the road gets torn into a lot for utility hook-ups. His concern is people already hooked up to the sewer with materials that are not updated. Replacing the materials would require the road to be dug up. It would be counterproductive to repave the road and then dig it up to work on utility hook-ups.
Supervisor Mardi Allen suggested setting up an agreement for snow removal at a minimal cost.
John Walters, executive director of the Dickinson County Conservation Board, said the Nature Center is pursuing new options for funding, but had no significant changes since last week's meeting. Allen and Pam Jordan encouraged Walters to continue working on the business plan. With a finished business plan, the conservation board can look into more grants. Walters said that he was waiting to hear back from several entities before holding a conservation board meeting.
In other matters, the board:
n Approved a fireworks permit for Village West on Saturday, July 11.
n Approved a worker's compensation payment.
n Approved the soil survey agreement billing process.
