A full agenda awaited Chase County Commissioners Dave Hogsett, Chuck Vette and Don Weiss, Jr. at the  June 27 commissioners’ meeting. Big topics on the agenda included the state mandated next generation E911 and the recycling center.
    Geneie Andrews with GIS Workshop provided details on what information her company can provide to prepare the county for the next step of the E911 system. Billie Muehlenkamp said the government-mandated system will have to be in place in the next 12-18 months, with Andrews saying July 2018.
    The system will be moving from a land-line data based platform to a geographic information system (GIS). Because so many 911 calls now come in via cell phones rather than land lines, it has become harder to get an accurate location of the emergency. GIS will narrow down the location based on the area cell phone towers.
    GIS data is one-third of the components needed for the new system. Public Service Commission representatives will be on hand at the July 10 meeting to discuss the hardware needed. Software is the third component.
    Each portion of the project is expensive. Funds for GIS Workshop’s work can come out of the county’s 911 set aside money, emergency management department and roads department. GIS Workshop can spread its costs, $19,500 for the GIS point layer, over two years. Another $29,300 for GIS mapping will be needed.
    The data will be available across the county offices. Zoning and the Assessor’s office already use the data. The emergency manager, roads and weeds department will be included.

Recycle center concerns
    Larry Carpenter, member of the Southwest Nebraska Solid Waste Agency, attended the meeting to express concerns over the state of the recycling center.
    Carpenter would like to see the county take over operation of the recycling center from the City of Imperial.
    “We can’t go on like this,” Carpenter said, adding that he’s worried the agency will be fined because the collected recycling is being sent to a landfill.
    “Right now the city and county can’t get along,” Carpenter said. “We need to eliminate the friction somehow.”
    Carpenter has looked into options for the center, including a third party, Western Resource Group, to take the product, except glass, at no expense, but said many of the decisions are being made by the city rather than the board.
    He also suggested hiring a full-time employee to take care of sorting and finding outlets for the material brought in. Western Resource Group would be willing to have its own employee man the recycling center.
    The recycling center was closed from June 19 to June 29 as equipment was being repaired.
 

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