ALLEN COUNTY, Kan. — Snow removal efforts went well in Allen County over the weekend. Road and Bridge Supervisor Jeremy Hopkins gave Allen County Commissioners an update on that Tuesday, and said they had crews out all weekend. Commissioner John Brocker said he’d been out during the weekend and said crews did a very good job, with similar comment from Commissioner David Lee, who also cited the work of cities in the county, in that Monday morning most major roads were clear.
Public Works Director Mitch Garner said they actually had some people come out to the landfill on Saturday.
Commissioners approved purchase of a new track loader for the airport, which Garner brought to them last week. This is a budgeted purchase, and one Garner noted would have been very useful last weekend. Garner also reported construction matters on the new cell at the landfill have been resolved and the final bill for it will be before them next week.
EMS Director Michael Burnett presented Commissioners with a quote for a remount of an ambulance box on a new chassis. The quote for this was at $262,700, some $87,000 less than a complete new ambulance would cost. Burnett said based on current scheduling, the earliest this remount could be done is in the latter part of 2027.
Commissioners raised the possibility of looking at a new ambulance purchase, that while costing more could have an earlier delivery, and look at a different brand of ambulance. The chassis on the ambulance to be remounted has 305,000 miles on it. There is also the potential for grants that could cover part of the cost.
Zoning Administrator Terry Call presented a zoning change request and two other items from the Planning Commission to Allen County Commissioners Tuesday, all of which were approved. Following a public hearing, approval was recommended for a zoning change from agricultural to commercial for a five acre site in the 1700 block of East Carpenter, just outside the Iola city limits, to allow construction covered RV and subcontractor building. Commissioners did express some concerns about traffic because the site is one way in, one way out, but Call noted traffic from this development would be minimal.
Another item approved involved a zoning change it had approved for a storage facility in 2009. The owner of the property in question recently learned part of the property, which has a building on it, had been left off the survey that was originally submitted when the zoning was approved. A new survey was done, and Commissioners approved the correction which essentially makes a non-conforming structure conforming with zoning regulations.
A conditional use permit was also approved allowing use of an existing concrete slab where a laser tag business was located prior to it being destroyed by fire some years ago for parking of four campers. On the latter two items, neighbors were contacted and no objections were voiced.
Commissioners agreed to continue participating in the Kansas Department of Commerce Rural Opportunity Zone program, though how long that will last is unknown. This program provides an incentive on the state level of $1,500 dollars a year for five years towards student loan payments for individuals agreeing to locate in designated counties in Kansas. Counties have the option to add to that, and Allen County in the past has, with one person in the program at a time.
This practice will continue, but the program is up for renewal this year and it’s not certain if the Kansas Legislature will approve that.
