The Greene County Board of Supervisors met Thursday.

During open forum, Jefferson resident Craig Berry told the Board that Market-2-Market Relay is cancelled this year due to the pandemic and the bridge still being out on the Raccoon River Valley Trail. 

County Engineer Wade Weiss then gave an update. He said there is a bill that was introduced in Congress about turning the rest of Highway 30 into a four-lane highway. He mentioned the Iowa Department of Transportation is still pushing for a “super-two” from Ogden to Carroll. 

County Attorney Thomas Laehn gave an update. He said the Iowa Attorney General’s office has proposed that 15-percent of a settlement from the state’s lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies that make opioids that patients have reportedly become addicted to, would directly go to all of the state’s counties, regardless if Greene County joins the lawsuit. He pointed out that a finalized payment schedule with Midland Power Cooperative for the county to purchase their facility in Jefferson as a new law enforcement center would be given to him soon. Laehn is also drafting an agreement with Greene County Early Learning Center for an advanced payment from the county for its contribution toward their new building project by May 1st. 

The Board then held a lengthy discussion regarding music played on the Mahanay Memorial Carillon Tower. Laehn asked for direction so that he could draft a new policy. Following the discussion, the Board instructed Laehn to allow for outside groups to make music requests and charge a fee for that request. The Board also took the advice of Laehn to appoint individual maestros to perform live music and to keep the digital music playing random songs on an hourly basis. Laehn will draft a policy for the Board to review at a future meeting.

The Board approved the first reading of a dust control ordinance. The ordinance stipulates that the County will provide products and application of those products to the public roadway, at a resident’s request. The resident will be charged for the product that is used to control dust on the roadway. 

Finally, the meeting ended in a budget workshop to review all proposed expenses for the 2022 fiscal year.