Bush tractor eyed by highway crew

Jay County will look into purchasing a used tractor for brush removal to replace an older model currently in use at the highway department.

Highway superintendent Ken Wellman approached the commissioners with the opportunity, informing them that a 1999 Massey Ferguson tractor is available for about $23,000 after trade-in from a dealer in Plymouth.

The tractor would be equipped with a bush ax and would be used to cut brush along roadways and other places as needed.

"You can hardly ever find a mid-mount in good shape," Wellman said of the tractor. "I think it's a good opportunity."

The department's current tractor, a 1984 John Deere, was purchased in 1996 for about $30,000 and would require about $6,000 of work to repair the bush ax and fix hydraulics.

Wellman said the Massey Ferguson tractor has a front-end mounted blade, as opposed to the John Deere which has a rear-attached ax. Currently, the driver has to look backward while driving to observe the cutting.

"This is a lot better direction for the county to move in terms of safety and comfort," Wellman said.

The Massey Ferguson only has been used about 1,100 hours and was formerly owned and traded in by a government in Clark County.

Wellman said the department has money available in its budget and he would look into whether the seller would offer it on a 50-50 payment plan over two years.

Wellman has not seen the tractor in person, but said he would take a trip to Plymouth to check it out if the commissioners approved.

"I'd rather see you spend the money on this than $6,000 to repair," said commissioner Faron Parr.

"I think you ought to go get it," commissioner Milo Miller Jr. said, as long as everything checked out during an on-site review.

In other business Monday, the commissioners:

•Signed a grant for the Jay County Emergency Management Agency, which will pay 50 percent of the department's salaries, a total of $23,120.03.

•Made Sheriff Ray Newton purchasing agent to buy four bulletproof vests at a cost of $1,119.92.

•Were informed by Wellman that a farmer working in a field on county road 300 South west of 300 East tore up a section of road with a plow that needed repair. The commissioners Wellman to calculate a cost for the emergency repair and that they would send a bill to the property owner.

•Accepted an annual propane bid from Blue Flame, Portland, which submitted the lowest bid.

•Were informed by Jay Emergency Medical Service director Teresa Foster-Geesaman that the garage doors at the Portland EMS bay are still not working properly. Miller told Foster-Geesaman to get the doors fixed and the cost will be covered out of county's infrastructure fund.

•Were informed by Foster-Geesaman that the City of Dunkirk is drafting a proposal for mowing at the combined EMS/fire station in Dunkirk. The commissioners told her to keep them informed, but that they would also talk to the highway department about mowing the property.[[In-content Ad]]