Johnson County Commissioners to Open Bids on Road Work for NioCorp Mine

The Johnson County Commissioners met Tuesday, March 10 in the county courthouse. They heard reports about projects being worked on by Emergency Management, County Road Department, and the Sheriff’s Department.
Roads
A road construction project to construct a turn lane on Highway 50 and pave approximately 1500 feet of 721 Road for an entrance to the NioCorp rare earth metals mine has gone to bid. Bidders have until 9:45 a.m. on April 7 to get their bids to the county clerk. At the commissioners meeting at 10:00 a.m., the commissioners will open the bids and possibly accept one of them, conditionally. The decision will be finalized by March 21.
Olsson Associates has sent a bill for work they have done on the project so far. The commissioners will need to open the budget to amend this year’s road budget and set up the account for this project. Olsson will have someone on the grounds at all times during construction at the mine site.
County Highway Superintendent Matt Schaardt updated the commissioners on the motor grader training being held March 23 – 26 at the Tecumseh Fire Hall. This training will have class work as well as actual road training. The training was opened up to other area counties and about 14 grader operators altogether are planning to attend. Schaardt is finalizing details of the roads that will be used for the training. The roads will be closed while they are working on them, but at the end of the class, the roads will be much improved.
A discussion of equipment included the receipt of a bill for $50,000 for putting a new transmission in one of the motorgraders. That is more than what is left in the budget so the commissioners decided to take the necessary remainder from Inheritance. Plans for next year include getting a new grader and a used loader with less hours than the current one. 
NioCorp
A conference-call with Jennifer Stehlik-Ladman was conducted to go over the proposal from NioCorp to pay for an additional deputy to be added to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Department roster. This will be an extra position, not filling a current open position. The three-year contract, beginning January 1, 2027, will reimburse the county for all expenses related to that position: salary, benefits, and equipment. They will pay what the county pays for regularly staffed deputies. In addition to personal equipment, NioCorp will also pay for the deputy’s vehicle. The cost estimate to cover all expenses is $93,000. The offer is to fund a certified deputy, but the commissioners considered having the county pay for a non-certified person to attend the academy if a suitable certified candidate is not found.
Zoning
With the increase in zoning permit applications, the commissioners realized a need to increase the fees because current fees do not cover the county’s zoning meeting expenses, including publications, mailings, and mileage. The commissioners voted to increase the fee for a Regular Use Permit (houses, garages, etc.) from $25 to $50. Special Use Permit fees (concrete plants, towers, chicken houses, etc.) increased from $75 to $500. These increases went into effect immediately.
The commissioners voted to appoint Andrew Pietzyk to the Zoning Board to fill a vacancy created when his father, Gary Pietzyk, moved out of the county.
Sheriff
Johnson County Sheriff Lynn Lyon reported that the new dispatcher is working out well and that another new dispatcher has just begun to work. A couple applications for the deputy position are pending.
Sheriff Lyon also reported that police dog Norra is coming up to the end of her service time, probably within the next year. He would like to get another police dog to replace her when that happens. “I think we need two dogs,” Lyon said. 
Emergency Management
Megan Buckley, Emergency Manager for Johnson and Pawnee Counties, has secured office space in the basement of the sheriff’s office and plans to move there soon.
She has received a quote, good until April, for two mobile repeaters and upgrades to the radios to make communication possible in all areas of the county. Specific trouble spots are around Elk Creek and some places around the Lancaster County line. These mobile repeaters fit behind the seat of the vehicle and would add another relay if something would go wrong with the current repeater. Getting a fixed repeater would come in at a higher cost. Tecumseh Rescue has one and it works well. The commissioners wanted it to be tested to see if it would work from within the building. 
Buckley is also conducting a tabletop exercise in Sterling on Thursday, March 26 at 6:30 p.m. in the Sterling Fire Hall with community/volunteer leaders to test out how everyone would work together in a disaster response and identify gaps in capabilities.