Commission stands firm on refusing to add to county maintenance roster

The answer is still no, the commissioners told two local residents last week.

The county will not be adding any more miles of road to the 600 already maintained, they said, because it cannot afford to do so.

Scott Pomerenke and Eric Akola approached the commissioners to ask them to reconsider adding a quarter mile of Old Sundance Road in the area where it meets Beaver Creek Road to the route of the county's snowplows.

This request was originally made in August, on the basis that snow tends to build up in a certain spot and it's difficult for landowners to push it far enough off the road to clear the problem before more snow falls.

At that time, the commission denied the request on the basis that no new roads have been added to the maintenance list in many years and doing so for this quarter mile would open a "can of worms" for the county, as there are many others who would like to see their roads maintained.

This time around, Pomerenke argued that he has identified a criterion by which the commission could justify adding the road: public infrastructure.

Since August, he said, he has noticed that the AT&T cell tower has been "heavily serviced". Noting that this tower provides a public service that many people rely on, he explained that residents had to add a load of gravel after the maintenance was complete.

Pomerenke also stated that he has watched service trucks from companies including FedEx and Blakeman Propane experience issues with that stretch of road.

Commissioner Bob Latham, however, said that the duo's request was not representative of all 17 landowners who use the road. Four have called him to say they do not want it plowed as doing so could worsen the problem, he said

"They don't want the county to mess with it, they want us to leave it alone," he said.

He also pointed out that plowing the road to the cell tower would not solve the problem of getting to the actual tower. The company would still need to bring equipment to cross its land, he said.

Sheriff Jeff Hodge noted that the roads to most cell towers are not plowed. It's private industry, he said, and these companies have the equipment to tackle the weather.

Latham also reiterated the commission's position that there are already 600 miles of road requiring maintenance and the county simply cannot afford to do more. Others have come in to ask for maintenance and have made pretty good arguments, he said, but the commission is unable to add them regardless.

"If we add one foot of unmaintained to it, everybody in Crook County is going to be in here," said Commissioner Kelly Dennis.

Akola put forth the argument that Crook County has a policy in place requiring any private person who wants to maintain a private road to have insurance and be bonded. Does this not prevent landowners from taking care of their own roads, he asked.

"That policy isn't for snowblowing," responded Road & Bridge Foreman Morgan Ellsbury.

Akola disagreed, noting that one of the stated reasons for maintenance in the policy is "drivability", which he suggested includes snow removal. He asked what the point of the policy is if the county does not enforce it.

Akola also argued that the landowners on the quarter mile of road pay the same taxes as everybody else, but do not have the same assurance that they can call for the services of the sheriff or an ambulance in an emergency.

Additionally, after requesting information from Ellsbury, he stated that the current maintenance schedule is not meeting the needs of the current population. One road on the maintenance list is six miles in length and services very few homes, while the quarter mile in question is used by 17 families.

"That, to me, is absurd," he said.

Commissioner Fred Devish pointed out that the maintenance schedule has been this way since Akola moved to the county – he knew the situation when he chose to live out in the county. Ellsbury added that the subdivision was put in two decades ago and everyone at that time understood, including the developer; it's only been since new people arrived that it became an issue, he said.

Times change, responded Pomerenke.

Hearing once again that the county is not prepared to plow the quarter mile of Old Sundance Road, Akola stated that he plans to speak to the rest of the landowners in the area and ask them to attend the next meeting to impress upon the commission that the request is coming from multiple families.