About a dozen people attended the regular county commissioners meeting, Tuesday, Mar. 1 in support of the High Point Motor Speedway (HPMS) proposal.

HPMS project manager, Dick Cutshaw provided the board with a packet that included economic surveys from the tracks in Pueblo, Colo. and Lincoln, Neb.

Also in the packets were the business plan and the presentation given to the public on Wednesday, Feb. 23. The business plan had much of the information commissioners had asked for at that meeting.

“We did mail these to the board back in April,” Cutshaw explained.

Board chairman Dave Bashaw informed those in attendance that the entire board was interested in learning more, but that certain protocol must be followed.

Commissioners responded to discussion and answered questions along with County Clerk Cathy Sibal about the legalities of the broadening the existing inter-local agreement as opposed to opening another one specifically for the race track.

According to the board, the county attorney is looking at those issues for them, and the commissioners believe the city attorney is as well for the city council. Both of those attorneys have been asked to work together to find the best way to go about the inter-local agreement, according the Bashaw.

“I’d like our grandchildren to have a place to come back to,” resident Terry Jefferson said, “I want you to diligently pursue this, not years down the road.”

Bashaw and the board agreed that the project was put on hold and that now it needed to be looked at as a possibility for Kimball County.

“It looks like the research has begun,” Sibal said of the first step towards taking the project further.

Sheriff Harry Gillway presented the updated list for the Local Emergency Planning Committee. That committee is comprised of almost twenty individuals, a fact about which many have expressed some concern.

A board or committee that large makes it difficult to have a quorum, and therefore the board cannot make any decisions or changes, according to Gillway.

He suggested that the board look at shrinking the number of members on the committee, to better allow for decision making processes.

Some new members have been added to the updated list. Those names include the new commissioner, Larry Engstrom and the newly hired police chief, Mark Simpson.

Engstrom requested that the committee make certain to have outlying villages in the county represented. Gillway assured the board that each village has a least one representative on the committee.

Gillway’s sheriff report included information about the large drug bust on Thursday, Feb. 24. In a combined effort with the Nebraska Highway Patrol, WINGS units, and the Kimball Police Department, the sheriff’s office made 13 drug-related arrests in Kimball and Cheyenne Counties on that day.

A fourteenth arrest has been made and the investigation is still ongoing.

“These were not just users, these were people selling to our community, often in the area of our schools,” Gillway said.

Gillway explained to the board that when he came to Kimball more than three years ago he was told that drug cases could not be worked effectively in Kimball due to a breach in confidentiality.

He said his office worked exceptionally hard to make sure that this case worked without a hitch. He commended Chief Deputy Marla Knigge for the many hours and the extensive work she devoted to make the arrests happen.

County roads and weed superintendent, Jerry Robbins, reported the road department increased to 10 hour days on Monday, Feb. 28.

The increase is due to warmer weather and will allow more time for the crews to maintain and repair county roads, he said.

Residents of the county can expect to see crews blading and graveling roads as well, according to Robbins.

He also stated that the crews are beginning work on replacing some  500 horizontal curve signs that were furnished, along with posts, by the state about two years ago.

Robbins asked the state for larger square posts to use for the signs, but has not received them.

“I drug my feet last year because we got T-posts and they don’t work well in this wind,” Robbins explained.

The Dix shop has a large overhead door that is not functioning properly, according to Robbins. He has checked prices and availability of a replacement door with two companies.

After getting estimates from Pro Overhead Door of Scottsbluff and Perfection Door from Sterling, Robbins chose to use the Colorado-based company.

The choice will save the road budget more than $100 as Perfection included travel costs and installation in their estimate.

Commissioner Larry Engstrom asked if the door would be insulated, have an automatic opener, Robbins said the door was not insulated and that the crew would still have to open the door themselves as an opener could cost as much as $1000 extra.

Robbins also reported to the board on the repairs being done to the 1987 CAT motor grader in addition to the approved overhaul.

According to Robbins the service manager believed that there were at least eight repairs needed immediately to the equipment at a total estimated cost upwards of an additional $3000.

Board chairman Dave Bashaw reminded Robbins that purchases over a certain amount need to be brought before the board if the purchase does not come out of the pre-approved budget.

Robbins stated that the additional cost will be covered out of the road department repair budget. Sibal offered to ensure compliance with an auditor regarding the matter.

As weed superintendent, Robbins reported to the board on the conference he recently attended. He received the new list of noxious weeds with pictures at the conference.

The only change Robbins stated was the addition of the Japanese Knot Weed to the list. Though Robbins said there are few instances in this area, many landowners buy this weed as an ornamental plant.