Commission renews interlocal with Merrick County
Agenda items tabled at last week’s regular Monday meeting of the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners were full steam ahead at the meeting this week. Following a bid opening for rehab of the Bader Bridge across the Platte River near Chapman at last week’s meeting, the board awarded the bid for the project on Monday, and the board also approved an interlocal agreement with Merrick County to provide planning & zoning services to the northern neighbor.
In the intervening week between the two meetings Chris Lane of the County’s engineering firm of Speece Lewis reviewed the bids and found that they were all in order. He recommended, however, that the county award the bid to the second lowest bidder, even though Simon of North Platte had submitted the low bid. Chairman Rich Nelson reported that Lane had said General Excavations LLC of Lincoln should be awarded the bid because there was a potential savings of $543,000 in the cost of the project because of the way the company proposed to handle the access crossing for the project. Evans had said the potential savings would more than make up for the $1,600 difference in the two bids. The project totaling $1.187 million was awarded to General Excavations LLC which plans to begin work this fall when the river is expected to be at a lower level.
With regard to the planning and zoning interlocal, County Business Manager Pat Shaw presented the revised document to the board recommending it be passed. He said he had consulted with County Attorney Douglas Dexter on minor changes to the contract to assure that Merrick County would pay for any additional expenses arising from large projects that might come up in the future in that county. The agreement is dated July 1 so Shaw said it would go into effect as soon as it was ratified by both counties.
Prior to the vote, Commissioner John Thomas raised the concern he had expressed several months ago when the renewal of the agreement between the two counties had first come up.
“I don’t think we have the experience or knowledge in that department to take on someone else’s planning,” Thomas stated.
However, Commissioners Francis McDonald and Nancy Salmon spoke in favor of the interlocal and Planning and Zoning Director Hilary Betka, who took over the position less than a year ago, reiterated her earlier statements that she was ready to take on the additional work.
The measure was approved on a 4-1 vote with Thomas voting no.
Rezoning hearing
In another planning and zoning item coming before the board on Monday, a public hearing was held on the rezoning of the southeast quarter of Section 33 from Transitional Ag to Industrial. The rezoning request was brought by TC Machine, Inc. located near the Syngenta plant so that the company can construct a new building to expand into manufacturing. The company said it plans to farm the rest of the acreage for the time being. The Joint Planning and Zoning Commission has sanctioned the rezone and the matter had come to the board at an earlier meeting but due to a clerical error it could not be finalized at that time.
The rezoning was approved on a unanimous vote.
First Light funding request
Earlier in the meeting the board heard from Leah Smillie, executive director of Initiative 13 First Light Child Advocacy Center in Grand Island. Smillie came requesting a donation of $5,500 from the county to continue working with children who have been abused and neglected, were victims of sexual assault or sex trafficking.
Smillie said First Light conducts interviews with children who have been sexually assaulted noting that the evidence revealed in the interview is usually enough convince the perpetrator to plead out the case. She said the organization serves 10 area counties including Hamilton.
Dexter spoke up in support of the agency, saying that 30 years ago when started out in law, such services did not exist which made his job much more difficult.
“It makes a huge difference,” Dexter said, adding that the evidence gained in the interviews is now admissible in court and the interview process is much easier on the children because they are interviewed in a non-threatening “natural setting.”
Smillie said in the last year 16 children from Hamilton County had been interviewed in the center and 114 county cases were assessed by the organization. She said often children are referred by the school system.
She also suggested that the sex trafficking situation locally is much worse than many people understand, stating that one human trafficking case in Grand Island involved 50 girls in Hall and several other surrounding counties.