Septic system work OK'd (10/13/2008)

The Jay County Commissioners granted permission to do work near a ditch across the county line.

The commissioners, in their capacity as Jay County Drainage Board, granted permission for a property owner to install a septic system within 50 feet of a county ditch in Wells County. The ditch sits just across the Wells-Jay line but is within the Loblolly watershed assessed by Jay County.

The commissioners asked that the owners mark the edge of the shallow trench system being installed with a post or other visible marker.

"We could damage it," said commissioner Gary Theurer, who was worried heavy equipment might crush some of the infrastructure if the ditch maintenance crews didn't know the system was there. "I suggest, if they could, just to mark it."

The commissioners signed permission to work within the right of way with the suggestion that the area be marked, to be delivered to the Wells County Board of Health.

The commissioners also briefly discussed Monday reevaluating the process for reviewing drainage assessments.

The suggestion came from attorney Lon Racster as the commissioners were talking about some watersheds currently in the red with Jay County Surveyor Brad Daniels. Racster suggested maybe the county could review drainage assessments when the debt in those funds rises above a set amount. An example used during today's discussion was the $5,000 level. Daniels said he would look at the current watershed funds to see if some funds could benefit from higher assessments if a new review process was approved.

"That'd be better than the way we're doing it," said commissioner Milo Miller Jr., however he realized, "We had a hard time trying to get everyone to pay $20 a plot" the last time they changed some assessments.

"Sounds like a good thing to do about January," joked Theurer, who will be out of office at that time.

In other business this morning, the commissioners:

•Were informed by Daniels that work crews for Walgreens had successfully linked into drainage lines after having to alter some plans since the last meeting.

•Heard information from Bryant resident Jim Spade, who was asking commissioners to consider the former Wal-Mart building in north Portland as a potential site for a Jay County Jail expansion. The commissioners informed Spade the building had been evaluated by the project architects during planning for the proposed jail project.[[In-content Ad]]