By: Charles Romans
Carter County Times
The Carter County Fiscal Court discussed road reports during their regularly scheduled meeting on Monday night (October 13).
The meeting opened with county residents speaking to the court and requesting that a portion of Sassafras Road be taken into the county maintenance schedule, amounting to a length of about one quarter of a mile. The gravel road has three tiles, two at eighteen inches and one ten inch tile, the residents informed the court. They told the magistrates that the tiles and roadway were in good shape.
Judge Executive Brandon Burton informed the residents that county protocol states that the road must be examined by two disinterested magistrates, not from the district where the road in question was located, before it can be taken into the county road system. If the road is found to meet the requirements, then the matter will be revisited at the next regular meeting, he explained.
“It usually takes two meetings,” Burton told the residents. “And then we can vote on it.”
One of the ordinance requirements is a center line survey, Burton explained. Once that survey and other requirements were met, then an open hearing would follow before the road could be officially taken into the county system. The court voted to start the process to accept Sassafras Road into the county maintenance schedule.
The court also went over the findings on other road reports during the meeting as well.
For instance, Forest Trail was found to meet the criteria to be accepted into the county road system, as the .255 mile distance of the road under consideration had a good gravel surface and had been maintained. As a reference point for those living or traveling near the road, the court noted, county maintenance would stop at the ‘Y’ in the road. A public hearing for accepting in the road was scheduled for November 10, at 5:30 p.m.
The court also voted to begin the process of taking Country Vista Road (.305 miles) into the county maintenance schedule as well. That road is located near Forest Trail and will need to be examined by the magistrates.
Yet another road, Walker Road, had been examined by the magistrates and was found to not meet the requirements to be taken into the county maintenance schedule currently, due to the road needing maintenance before being accepted in.
A .19 mile section of Bourbon Hollow Road (CR 1617F) was also determined to be eligible for removal from county maintenance.
“I didn’t see any reason why it couldn’t be taken out,” Burton told the court. “So, we can move it also to the public hearing on November 10.”
South Bourbon Hollow, at .03 of a mile long, was also found to be eligible for removal from the county road maintenance schedule and will be moved to the same public hearing on November 10 as well.
In other action the fiscal court voted to accept the treasurer’s report and the sheriff’s report, as well as voting to accept claims and transfers. The court briefly went into executive session to discuss personnel and litigation, but no action was taken. The court also voted to post an opening for the position of Solid Waste Coordinator. That position posting will be open for two weeks.
Judge Burton also gave magistrates applications that had been submitted through the Business Cultivation Foundation to receive money from the Opioid Abatement Fund.
Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com
