Flexible Plans Needed For County Road Projects

Staff Writer

Now that they have $6 million to spend on road improvements, Van Zandt County’s four precinct commissioners want to make sure it is well spent.

In a special session Monday, the county commissioners discussed a few issues about accounting for the materials they will buy over the next three years. The money comes from certificates of obligation approved by the court last month, to be financed over the next 15 years.

Before approving account numbers for the earmarked money, the discussion centered on developing plans for how and where the funds would be spent. Precinct 2 Commissioner Virgil Melton Jr. said flexible planning and documentation would be necessary.

"It’s all going to be used for roads and that’s the main thing," said Melton. "We can’t tie our hands. We all have plans, but we certainly may have to add and delete from the plan."

Precinct 4 Commissioner Ron Carroll agreed that some flexibility would have to enter the picture.

"To be sure, there are going to be roads that you might set a budget of $50,000 for, and they might turn out to be just $40,000, or they may run $60,000 or $70,000," he said.

Precinct 3 Commissioner Kelles Miller said he was concerned about the expenses not covered by the certificates of obligation, such as fuel, labor and equipment.

"If you use a reclaimer this year and you normally use it on two miles of road, well, now you’re talking about using it on 12 miles of road. If it breaks down on you five or six times, it is a big expense….

"But we’ll still be ahead," Miller added. "We may have to compensate on some things we wanted to move on."

County auditor John Shinn noted that personnel salaries, fuel and other related expenses would remain the domain of the commissioners’ regular budgets, and as Carroll later put it, "Why would you want to finance $4.35 a gallon fuel for 15 years?"

Melton said the planning of road improvements and documentation on the work done over the next three years will be necessary to assure citizens the money is being governed properly.

"As elected officials, it is our responsibility to oversee county finances and the citizens look to us for that," he said.

Carroll later added, "I agree there should be a plan in place…I would want something so that when a taxpayer says ‘What did you do?’ and I can say ‘Here’s how much was done on your road.’"

Also in Monday’s session, the commissioners’ court appointed Detra Janzen as interim county treasurer, effective June 1.

Janzen, an employee in the county tax assessor/collector office, will replace Terry Shepard, who resigned last week and will leave the county treasurer post on May 30. Janzen will serve as county treasurer until one is elected in November to serve the remainder of the current term.

The court also approved a letter-of-intent with the City of Wills Point to purchase the North Fifth Street lot for the new county annex building. Van Zandt County Judge Rhita Koches said the purchase totaling $51,000 would include $31,000 cash and $20,000 in materials to go toward a parking lot and part of the adjacent alley. The City of Wills Point is planning its own municipal building on another part of the lot.