Commission talks County Road 45 repairs

Published 8:05 pm Monday, June 11, 2018

Repairing County Road 45 dominated the Dallas County Commission meeting on Monday at the Dallas County Courthouse.

Selma resident Cindy Yeager voiced her complaints to the five-member Commission in the Dallas County Courthouse. An asphalt company was hired to fix the road weeks ago, but they didn’t finish the project.

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“This is a business area, we can’t do our work,” Yeager said.  “Loads of cattle and wheat have to be delivered.”

Dallas County Commission chairman Kim Ballard and Commissioner Roy Moore both assured Yeager the dilemma will be handled and for Dallas County engineer George Jones to get the company to finish the project.

Jones said the occasional daily rain showers is why the road on County Road 45 remains unfinished.

“The weather has been a big problem,” Jones said. “It’s delayed the road to get fixed.”

Moore shifts the blame to the asphalt company assigned to fix the road.

“The asphalt company starts one job in one area, then they go work in another area,” Moore said. “The company does as they please. It’s rare one when one asphalt company controls all of the bidding.”

The Commission offered people driving down County Road 45 to take an alternate route: take Highway 29 to Marion Junction, go to State Route 22, get on State route 5 and it will lead back to U.S. Highway 80.

The other big news from the meeting occurred when Dallas County Economic Development Authority Executive Director Wayne Vardaman requested two tax abatements for C&L Tiling and an unnamed business. The County Commission approved both.

C&L Tiling and Timewell Drainage Products, based in Timewell, Illinois, have brought a plastic pipe manufacturing facility to Dallas County. Timewell purchased a 40,000 sq. ft. building on 20 acres from the Craig Field Airport and Industrial Authority.

“I’m glad to abate taxes because it will open up more jobs in the area,’’ Moore said. “90 percent of the companies won’t come here. Wayne did an excellent job to bring them here.”

In addition to Ballard and Moore, other Commissioners present at the County Commission meeting were Valerie Reubin, Larry Nickles and Curtis Williams.

The next County Commission meeting will be June 25 at 4 p.m. at the County Courthouse.