Douglas County Board meetings often include requests from residents, looking for opportunities to improve their land, or start a home-based business. County employees assist by providing information on how to proceed in the best interest of all county residents and then commissioners’ review the information and make the final decision.
On Tuesday, October 15, commissioners voted on requests for a home-based hair salon and massage business, cleaning out one side of a ditch, rather than another side, and properly converting a resort to sell to a cooperative of owners. Commissioners also established a Cannabis Committee, allowed Arrowwood to expand its beach, and moved forward on potentially changing a rail crossing in Alexandria.
Before those items on the agenda, commissioners accepted two substantial donations. The first was from LaGrand Township for $1,000 to be used for the Sheriff’s Office Dive/Search and Rescue Team. The second was also for $1,000 to the Veteran’s Service Office. These funds were donated on behalf of Robert Hegg and are to be used for veterans in need of assistance.
Land and Resource Management
Director Dave Rush presented commissioners with a request to separate a lot, with an existing home, from an existing commercial resort on Mill Lake. The resort owners plan to sell the resort which currently has 22 recreational vehicles and seven cabins. The future planned unit development will reduce the number of cabins and RV’s and move all the units back from their current locations along the shoreline. Commissioners approved the requests.
Commissioners also had a lengthy discussion about a request from a homeowner who planned to open a one chair hair salon and massage business in her house in La Grand Township. The township supported the conditional use permit, but neighbors attended the Planning and Advisory Commission (PAC) meeting to share their opposition. Conditional Use Permits go before the PAC before being decided on at county board meetings. The neighbors said a restrictive covenant, enacted in October of 1993, prohibited home-based businesses in the subdivision. The homeowners said their realtor assured them the restrictive covenant had expired. Land and Resource Management Director Dave Rush told commissioners the county does not enforce private covenants and, he explained to them, there also is a state statute that requires such covenants be actively renewed at specified time periods to be enforceable. Commissioners voted to approve the home-based business.
Commissioners also approved an expansion of the beach at Arrowwood Resort. The new owners will be allowed to expand in a manner that does not negatively impact an area of bulrush and underwater vegetation that is good for the fish population. Rush told the board the resort is trying to renovate and enhance the facility. The resort owns more than two thousand feet of shoreline on Lake Darling. The newly expanded beach will be just 230 feet of shoreline.
Public Works
Drainage and Ag Inspector Tom Anderson presented several requests regarding the maintenance and cleaning of county ditches. County Ditch 23 has been an issue for years and at this meeting commissioners voted to move forward with cleaning, contingent upon the costs being covered by the $15,000 the Lake Ida Association has pledged to do the work.
Commissioners also approved spending the $8,680 needed to repair Branch 6 of County Ditch 22. The funds come from accounts established solely for each ditch. Landowners who benefit from the work pay into those accounts.
In one of the more unusual requests, a landowner on Branch 3 of County Ditch 4-16 asked the county to do maintenance work on the east side of the ditch rather than the west. The reasoning? His land on the west is in an established program and it can’t be disturbed without impacting him financially. Commissioners discussed whether agreeing to this prevents them from ever doing maintenance on the west side. Ultimately, they agreed to the request to leave a 16.5-foot access along the west side of the re-established alignment of Branch 3 of County Ditch #4-16 on the landowner’s property.
The Commissioners also approved a grant of $28,000 for a consultant to look at the feasibility of raising the Canadian Pacific Kansas City Rail Grade at McKay Avenue in Alexandria to eliminate two crossings. This, the grant application states, would eliminate the time vehicles spend idling while waiting for the train to cross and it will benefit the area adjacent to the crossing which has several apartments and a mobile home park. Elimination of the railroad crossing should remove any chance of a train colliding with a vehicle, bicyclist or pedestrian.
The next county board meeting is Tuesday, November 5 at 9 a.m. Meetings are held at 821 Cedar St. Alexandria.