Supervisors adopt proposed budget, pledge $105,000 to Robey Memorial Library expansion

by Bob Beach

During its regular meeting Monday, March 12, the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors held a public hearing on its proposed budget for the coming fiscal year. Chairman Larry Schellhammer said that the Board has worked on the County’s budget since January, and that department budgets were reviewed “literally line-by-line.”
Hearing no objections from the public, the Board closed the public hearing and voted unanimously to adopt the proposed budget for the 2013 fiscal year. The $20.6 million budget includes $5.6 million raised from property taxes and increases of 10 cents per $1,000 valuation to the Rural Services Levy and 27.4 cents per $1,000 valuation to the General Supplemental Levy.
The budget also includes a $35,000 contribution to the Robey Memorial Library expansion project in Waukon. The Board passed a resolution pledging $35,000 per year for three years (a total of $105,000) to the project. Supervisor Lennie Burke said that in the past, the Board has supported projects that draw state funds to the County by applying for Vision Iowa CAT grants, as has been done for the library expansion project. Supervisor Sherry Strub noted that 43% of the Waukon library’s circulation of materials is to rural residents and 45% of the library’s patrons are rural residents.
The Board also met with County Engineer Brian Ridenour, who presented the Board with a resolution to place embargoes on County asphalt roads, limiting traffic to five tons for single-axle vehicles and seven tons for tandem-axle vehicles. The Board passed the resolution, which Ridenour said would be enforced by the County Sheriff’s Department and by the Iowa Department of Transportation.
During public comment time, newly appointed member of the Planning and Zoning Commission Doug Mullen said that fee increases discussed by the Board at its regular meeting last week were presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission as “already approved” by the Board during budget discussions to “pay for [Zoning Administrator] Tom Blake’s $3,000 raise.” Supervisor Strub said that the proposed fees are lower than many surrounding counties and that the increases did not have any bearing on Blake’s raise.
In other business, the Board voted unanimously to eliminate the part-time position of Substance Abuse Prevention Director, currently held by Barb Winters, and to change the full-time position of Substance Abuse Prevention Youth Coordinator, currently held by Jean Bossom, to a department head position effective July 1. The Board also accepted the Weed Commissioner’s annual report as presented by Laurie Moody.