Continued water issues prompt Assessor to seek solutions

     The Jones County Assessor’s Office has dealt with three major water issues in a little less than three years. All three incidents were enough to heavily damage office furniture and equipment and disrupt the daily operations of the office.

     Now, the Assessor’s Office, as well as the IT (Lisa Mootz) and GIS (Kristi Aitchison) offices are temporarily relocated within the Jones County Courthouse.

     A couple of weeks ago, dirty sewer water leaked into the IT Office and down to the Assessor’s Office. The leak happened over the weekend and was not found until Monday morning. It caused extensive damage.

     The Assessor’s Office is now operating out of the Community Room until their office and new furniture are set up.

     During the July 10 Board of Supervisors meeting, Sarah Benter, county assessor, asked the supervisors when the issue would be resolved. Benter said, knowing the Community Room does not have water issues, the assessors would be willing to permanently relocate there and move the Community Room to her old office space once it’s cleaned up. However, that would mean the Assessor’s Office would lose some square footage with four employees.

     “We’re taking steps to hopefully alleviate this from happening again,” Supervisor Wayne Manternach offered. “But we can’t guarantee anything.”

     Benter said as the pipes throughout the courthouse continue to age, more breaks and leaks would occur.

     “That’s my concern,” she said.

     Not knowing the feasibility of it, Benter asked if the pipes leading into her office could just be replaced or updated, versus updating the entire courthouse. “I need to know something sooner or later to order our furniture,” she told the board.

     “Regardless we need to fix the plumbing anyway,” urged Supervisor Jon Zirkelbach.

     Benter said it’s a continuous problem for her office. “It displaces us and disrupts what we’re trying to do,” she said. “We’re just looking for some solution.”

     Manternach said they need to “attack” the plumbing problem “extra hard,” rather than relocate offices.

     “We would prefer to be back in our offices but we don’t want to do this again in another year,” said Benter.

     Benter said Next Generation Plumbing and Heating from Monticello has been working on the problem since it was discovered. Manternach suggested the company should come to the board meeting to explain the county’s options and cost estimates moving forward as far as what could be done.

     County Auditor Janine Sulzner thought the pipe stemmed from the kitchen area in the jail on the third floor.

     “Is it feasible for the jail to go on a whole separate system?” asked Benter.

     Jeff Swisher, Chief Deputy Sheriff, said he contacted other jails regarding issues like this, and some have grinders in their sewer lines that help grind up matter before it filters through the pipes.

     “You could ask (Next Generation) about it,” he suggested.

In other county business:

     • Zirkelbach reported that the JETS offices are up and running inside their new facility on John Drive in Monticello. He said they are discussing a potential open house in the near future.

     • Supervisor Ned Rohwedder spoke to Denny Carstensen with Memorial Hall in Wyoming regarding the cost of the roof replacement project. Their board offered to contribute $5,000 toward the project.

     The supervisors will hold off on a complete roof replacement this year, and provide some patching over the winter.

     • Sulzner informed the board that the Jones County Conservation Board was approached by the Legionnaire Ballroom in Oxford Junction about the possibility of taking over operations.

     “It’s expensive to maintain that building,” commented Rohwedder. “All of the veterans are getting older and it’s getting harder to keep up.”

     • Michele Lubben, Land Use administrator, informed the board that William and Kristine Seeley appealed a Board of Adjustment action to District Court.

     The couple rises on 150^th Street in Wayne Township. They sought a farmstead split for their 13 acres. Lubben said the application was denied because the requirement is a minimum of 40 acres. After her denial, the BOA upheld the decision as well.

     “They agreed with my interpretation of the ordinance,” she said of the BOA.

     A judge, County Attorney Phil Parsons and the Seeley’s attorney met in court on July 11. Each side presented a written statement. No witnessed were present. Lubben said the judge’s ruling could take up to a month.

     “It’s up to the interpretation of the ordinance,” Lubben explained.

     • The board approved the hiring of Michelle Gehl of Cascade as a new deputy sheriff.

     Gehl has a four-year degree from the University of Iowa and two years of law enforcement experience.

     Graver said the department is excited for the opportunity to bring in a female officer.

     Graver said with this added position, it would give double coverage throughout the county every night.

     Gehl starts her new position this week, the week of the Jones County Fair.

     “She’ll be an integral part of the security there,” remarked Graver.