The Custer County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Tuesday morning, January 27 at the Custer County Courthouse in Broken Bow. District 6 Supervisor Lynn Longmore was not at the meeting, but called in by phone to participate. Board President and District 5 Supervisor Charles Blowers called the meeting to order at 9:00 AM.
County Roads Department Presents Completed Projects, 1 and 6 Year Plan
The majority of the Supervisors time on Tuesday was spent receiving the annual report and 1- and 6 Year Construction and Maintenance Schedule from the Custer County Highway Department. Highway Superintendent Chris Jacobsen and Assistant County Road Superintendent Nick Olson were on hand to provide an overview of recently completed work on the county’s roads and bridges, and to provide a map for future work.
A number of outdated wood-structure bridges have been replaced in the past year. The bridges, which were generally smaller structures to begin with, are being replaced with steel culverts in most cases.
A federally-funded bridge replacement program is slated for 2028 to the south of Comstock on Road 462, crossing the Middle Loup River. While the replacement project may be funded by the federal government, Jacobsen told the supervisors that the County owns the structure and is responsible to support the construction program.
The project has been in work since 2022, and will cost an estimated $5.5 million, paid by the federal government. The project will extend the bridge by over 200 feet, but the length of development and cost are due in large part to regulatory requirements that must be met, such as environmental and historical reviews.
However, Jacobsen stated that without federal involvement the replacement project would cost the county $2.5 million directly, a sum not feasible in the current budget.
Also slated for improvements are a number of areas off of Gates Road to address issues with erosion – fixing the slope of the shoulders in the area.
Highway intersections such as at Gates Road and Victoria Springs Road are also due for repairs. Heavy truck traffic causes many such intersections to collapse, requiring frequent repair. The Supervisors debated pouring concrete in these areas, creating a more expensive but longer-term solution, versus more frequent re-building using only hot-mix asphalt.
Jacobsen noted that the Anderson Crossing project, addressing the railroad crossing just south of Ansley is at about 98% complete at this time. A drainage improvement project around Kramer Canyon Road and Paulsen Road is currently ongoing as well.
The Supervisors approved the 1- and 6-Year Road Plans. Maps and timelines can be found at the end of this article, and at the Custer County Courthouse.
Just prior to the broader discussion of highway maintenance, the Custer County Highway Department was provided their annual re-authorization to post load limit restrictions by the Supervisors. Load limit capacities are designed to prevent damage from over-weight vehicles. The limits are 15 tons for semi trucks and 10 tons for straight trucks.
Jacobsen stated these would only be posted when needed. However, when the restrictions are not followed, Jacobsen has in the past called on Carrier Enforcement out of North Platte to issue citations to violators. The Supervisors also authorized Jacobsen to issue permits to businesses adjacent to load-limited roads allowing them to run heavy trucks when needed.
Supervisors Consider Purchase of Emergency Communications Tower in Ansley, Insurance for Sargent Tower
Region 26 Emergency Management Director Alma Beland brought to the Supervisors a proposition, recommending Custer County purchase the emergency services tower located in Ansley. The tower is currently owned by Region 26, based out of Taylor, but Custer County has equipment mounted there for their own dispatch and communications. Region 26 is asking $10,000 for the tower, which is not actually located within their area of responsibility.
Supporting the idea of the purchase was Custer County Emergency Manager Mark Rempe. Rempe noted that Custer County currently uses the tower for no charge. The City of Ansley also supports the tower by providing low electric rates and charging no rent for the property on which the tower sits. Rempe stated that costs to build a new tower would start with $5,000 just in labor, without buying the metal to actually build the tower.
District 7 Supervisor Sara Parliament stated that the continued use of the tower was critical to emergency communications in that area. Due to the topography of the region around Ansley and Mason City, the signal from other towers cannot be received. Loss of use of the tower would hamper emergency communications in that area.
However District 1 Supervisor Anne Gibbons wanted to know how Custer County could purchase the tower which is actually situated on land owned by the City of Ansley.
Acknowledging that more work needs to be done to ensure all legal requirements have been addressed for the purchase, the Supervisors decided to hold off on any purchase for the time being.
Separately, the Supervisors agreed to add insurance on Emergency Management communication equipment mounted to a tower north of Sargent, pending review of inter-local agreements and contracts to ensure ownership of the equipment is properly constituted. The added insurance is expected to cost in the neighborhood of $140 to $170 annually.
Other Supervisors Actions
In other Supervisors actions, the group began the meeting discussing committee activities for the past two weeks.
District 4 Supervisor James Markham noted initial work is finally underway to replace shingles on the Department of Health and Human Services Building, with a sample of shingles removed to determine the type and color for replacement.
District 3 Supervisor Clay Govier indicated he had attended the recent meeting of the Custer Economic Development Corporation. It was noted that an additional eight sites in the Eagle Crest Subdivision on the northeast side of Broken Bow had been purchased for new construction.
Govier had also attended the Custer County Historical Societies celebration of pioneer photographer Solomon D. Butcher’s 170th birthday, held Saturday, January 24. Govier said the event was well attended, especially considering the frigid temperatures braved by the celebrants.
Gibbons noted the passing of Comstock resident and long time Custer County Jailer Margaret Devine.
Due to a late-arriving change in state legislation, many counties inappropriately updated their Supervisors’ pay scales for the next four years. Per the recently approved statute, Supervisors’ pay must be locked in for 2-year increments, rather than an ongoing increase as approved at the December 30 Supervisors meeting. The Supervisors approved a pay rate of $28,892.88 for 2027 and 2028, with the salary for 2029 and 2030 to be reviewed and set in 2028.
The Supervisors also renewed their membership with the Custer Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) at the A Member level for $3,000. However, Gibbons noted that she would like to see more engagement by the CEDC county-wide. Gibbons stated that Sargent has hosted at least 6 Entrepreneurial Communities Activation Process (ECAP) meetings in search of a grant of up to $500,000 for economic development in the city, without representation of the CEDC present.
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program report will be presented by the CEDC at a later date.
The Custer County Board of Supervisors adjouned at 11:02 AM. The next meeting of the Supervisors is scheduled for Tuesday, February 10 at 9:00 AM at the Custer County Courthouse.
