Fuel prices continue to hit county hard
Staff reporter
susan@marionrecord.com
Marion County Commission approved fuel purchases that were the most ever paid.
At Friday's meeting, the commission approved two bids from Cardie Oil Company of Tampa for two separate fuel purchases.
The first was for 5,500 gallons of diesel and 2,500 gallons of unleaded gas. Cardie's bid was $4.081 per gallon for the diesel for a total of $22,445 and $3.564 per gallon for a total of $8,910. The two purchases together were $31,355.
Cooperative Grain and Supply of Hillsboro was a close second with a total bid of $31,435.
In a second fuel purchase, the two entities bid on area fuel bids where diesel fuel is transported to four different locations in the county. Those bids were $25,296 from Cardie and $25,463 from Cooperative Grain for 6,550 gallons of diesel.
With the rising cost of fuel, acting public works director John Summerville asked the commission for direction regarding the stockpiling of sand.
Summerville reported it would cost the county $10.50 per ton to have a stockpile at the county's south shop. Koehn Trucking will haul the sand to the shop location.
The cost of hauling sand by the independent trucker has increased $4, Summerville said, and the price is good only for 30 days.
He continued that none of his section men/motorgrader operators want sand on their roads because those roads have to be graded differently.
The commission agreed that some roads needed to have sand on them to reduce dust but the typical county road does not need the sand.
Summerville was instructed to check with other counties regarding policies for dust control.
It was suggested that Summerville have some sand in reserve at the current price and for him to bring individual requests for sand to the commission for consideration.
— A letter was received by the commission from Kansas Department of Transportation regarding funding for future road projects in 2011. Changes are being made to the plan to reduce costs.
It was noted that there is a grant program available for cities with connecting links to apply for funds up to $200,000 for street repairs.
— WRAPS coordinator Peggy Blackman reported that the previous county commission had allowed field access to Dennis Youk west of Durham. Since that time, erosion has caused a bridge near the property to deteriorate. Restorations qualify for WRAPS funding, Blackman said, which covers 90 percent of the project.
The property owner does not think he should have to pay the 10 percent.
Blackman said she will try to reserve some funding from the WRAPS program to pay the 10 percent since the county has been supportive of the WRAPS program.
If the bridge project is to occur, it wouldn't begin until fall.
— The commission reviewed annual reports from townships, fire, and cemetery districts. It was noted that some of the districts have a significant fund established which may be an indication for those districts to review their finances and reconsider their levees.
