Lyon County commissioners approved contracts and the sending of a letter to state officials during their weekly action session Thursday morning.
Representatives of the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office were in attendance for two separate matters Thursday. The first was to ask commissioners to sign off on a recently drafted letter to be sent to Kansas Department of Transportation Secretary Julie Lorenz.
The letter is seeking a meeting between KDOT and county officials on the topic of traffic flow and resources available to local responders whenever KDOT makes the decision to close the turnpike gates in Emporia. The most recent instance of this was during the blizzard which blew through the area back in November.
According to Lyon County Sheriff Jeff Cope, the closing of the turnpike leads to backup of traffic on other major roadways such as Highway 50 and Interstate 35. He explains the backup of traffic then creates chances for additional accidents, especially in severe weather situations.
Cope adds, this is not to just address closings in the case of severe winter weather, as the turnpike can also be closed down in the event of a major accident or other situations which could occur year round.
The letter was first proposed during the recent city-county joint meeting earlier in the month. Signatures from both entities were requested for the letter, however, county commissioner Scott Briggs says neither commission will be involved in any potential meetings with state officials.
According to Sheriff Cope, the county signature was the final component needed and he expects the letter to be sent off by the end of the week.
In other business Sheriff Cope along with Bruce Boettcher of BG Consultants also sought commissioner’s signatures on contracts for interior improvements to the Sheriff’s Office. According to Cope, the project will see, “open wasted space” within the department converted into office space.
He explains the individual who maintains much of the office’s registered offender information currently works in an area which has limited space and a high amount of foot traffic. He says the increased space will help improve efficiency within the Sheriff’s Office.
The total cost of the project is just over $57,000.
Also during the meeting, commissioners approved a software license and maintenance fee of $44,530 for the county’s touch screen voting machines. Commissioners also received an update on work schedules from Lyon County Appraiser Gary Stapp.
Commissioners will next meet next Thursday at 8 am inside the Lyon County Courthouse.
