Commissioner contemplate cutting of county roads for access permits

The cutting of paved county roads for access permits was discussed at length during the January 21 meeting of the Big Horn County commissioners.

County engineer Willie Bridges and Road/Bridge supervisors Shannan Hovey and Eric Mann were in attendance, as were all three commissioners and Clerk Lori Smallwood.

A right-of-way permit for the Northwest Rural Water District was presented for approval. This permit was not on a paved road. The request had been tabled for a few meetings by the commissioners. 

The county had requested that Northwest provide an agreement to abide by the conditions for this permit. Commissioner Dave Neves said he wanted the permit tabled until the agreement was returned by Northwest. Bridges noted that Northwest did respond recently via email regarding an agreement for Northwest to abide by the conditions of this permit. 

Bridges added that the county had requested a guarantee on Northwest’s permit for another permit that was for cutting County Road 11. That guarantee was never received by the county. Tony Rutherford from the water district was also in attendance at this meeting.

Commissioner Dave Neves said at the July 2 commissioner meeting a representative from the district was there. That person was aware that the county policy was not to allow cuts on paved county road and that the county was making an exception for the district.  

He continued that the county allowed a cut near Burlington for the South Big Horn County Water District. There have been issues with this cut and the cut done by Northwest on Road 11. Neves hopes the county doesn’t have to go back to the no-cut policy. His thought is that if the cut is allowed, it should be repaired right away as far as the patch.

“I don’t think we can allow the gravel patch on the oiled road to stay there for a long time,” Neves said. “It needs to be done quickly. I hope we can work with whoever does the cut.” 

Commissioner Bruce Jolley said the county made it very clear to the district the cut on Road 11 needed to be fixed quickly. It is a busy road. The road was cut in July, and no repairs were done until September, according to the county. Plus, he would like Northwest to still send the requested guarantee for Road 11.

Rutherford was asked if he was aware that the guarantee had not been done. He said he was unaware of the request for it. He reiterated the point later, saying Northwest was never contacted about any issues. 

Rutherford addressed the commissioners, saying, “If I could add a little bit. Getting utilities from one side of a paved county road to the other is a pretty common thing we do quite often in both counties that we operate in. There are two paving contractors in the two counties. We are subject to their schedules.” He doesn’t believe that any of the other utility companies pave themselves. 

He continued that he wasn’t aware of any time that the cut on Road 11 wasn’t maintained with gravel or if there was a big dip that was causing an issue. Rutherford added that they cut in Park County and have left gravel in the patch the entire winter.

“It is a pain in the neck because we have to maintain them through the winter,” he said. “It is part of what we do to get by to try to get our utility service to everybody. Each time we have to go out there it costs us time and money. Each time we have to come get permits it costs us time and money. Those are costs that just keep getting passed along to our customers.”

He also stated that he doesn’t believe Northwest drug its heels on the previous (Road 11) permit. 

Jolley replied that the Road 11 project wasn’t taken care of long enough that he wasn’t sure how many complaints he personally received. (The road was cut in July, and no repairs were done until September, according to the county.) 

He continued that the cut in Burlington had to be fixed numerous times, noting, “The last two cuts we permitted we’ve had trouble.” Neves shared that in a meeting with the other water district regarding cutting a road, that district told the commission that the district would be responsible in perpetuity for the cut once the contractor’s warranty had expired. According to Bridges, that is atypical. 

Rutherford stated Northwest doesn’t take of roads long term in either county, stating, “Gravel, paved or otherwise. We don’t have to do it on the state highways. Typically, there is a warranty period that we sign up for. The last cut we did, we gave you a $2,000 bond that hopefully will go toward making any of that right if it wasn’t satisfactory. I don’t know that anything we have done has been deemed unsatisfactory at any point.” 

His concern is receiving the permits in a timely manner. Neves told Rutherford he could blame the delay on this permit on him.

“I was the one that suggested we put a halt on it just because we wanted to bring to your attention that we weren’t very happy with the way that got patched,” he said.

Commission chairwoman Deb Craft reiterated that the county is trying to work with the utility companies. The county understands there are times that a bore under the road does not work and is very expensive. This is why they have allowed a few cuts.

Neves suggested that future permits have a time period on them for repair. Bridges agreed that would be a good idea, so everyone has the same understanding.

Rutherford said Northwest is here to work with the county, including fixing and maintaining what they work on and do. Sometimes it takes more time in this part of the world because there aren’t as many resources, he said.

In other business:

• Kim Gifford from the North Big Horn Senior Center discussed adding an awning to the center.

• Mark Foster from the Bighorn National Forest gave a department update and informed the commissioners that he had accepted a job in Montana. 

• Weed & Pest Supervisor Cliff Winters shared the W&P annual report.

• County Prevention Grant Coordinator Travis Sylvester gave a department update. 

• Paul Thur and Stephanie May gave department reports for Airports/Land Planning.