Department heads push for aerial photos and new maps
Staff reporter
With the end of the year approaching and federal grant funds anticipated due to a summer flood, some Marion County department heads have visions of spending some of the windfall on a mapping project.
More than $700,000 in Federal Emergency Management Agency grant funds are anticipated in the coming months. However, the county commission is not willing to disperse the funds until more information is provided.
Dianna Carter-Frantz, county appraiser, Michele Abbott-Becker, county communications and emergency management director, and David Brazil, county sanitarian, zoning, and transfer station manager, told the commission Monday they would like county funds spent on a mapping project that would include current aerial photographs of all properties in the county and a tracking system.
The last time aerial photographs were taken was in the 1980s, Carter-Frantz reported. She added modern technology now could provide a closer image which would assist her department.
Abbott-Becker agreed the closer photos would enhance her department's ability to see intersections, pipelines, water sources, etc. She said it would enhance the county's new 911 system by enabling a dispatcher to pull up a map on computer that would correspond with the location of an emergency.
Brazil said he would be interested in the global positioning system options. He would like to see every well and wastewater system identified on the map.
Abbott-Becker said the information would be formatted through a common software program, Adobe Reader.
"Instead of going to the appraiser's office and pulling out a large, cumbersome blue line, information could be obtained through a disc," Abbott-Becker said.
She said cities also would be interested in the information.
Commissioner Howard Collett said he had a problem with aerial photographs that show every square inch of a person's property.
"I wonder, how much information do we need about each one of our citizens?" Collett asked. "There's a privacy issue here."
Carter-Frantz said state statute gave her department the right to go on property.
Copies of bids were distributed to the commission with one bid discussed for $70,000 for photography. Carter-Frantz said the county would be responsible for survey points for GPS. She said the county could be photographed in one day in the month of February. Turnaround time would be about 45 days.
Currently the appraiser's office receives aerial photographs with less resolution and do not include cities.
Randy Dallke, commissioner-elect, asked if photographs would need to be taken again in five or 10 years at a cost of $70,000 each time? Carter-Frantz said updates would need to be done but wasn't sure how often the entire county would be photographed.
The appraiser's budget also could contribute $8,000 from 2004 toward the purchase. Abbott-Becker said 911 grant funds could cover some of this expense. She also said she would like to see FEMA reimbursements go toward the project.
"It was revenue above what was budgeted," Abbott-Becker said.
County clerk Carol Maggard said the first reimbursement the county received was placed back in the specific line items from which the original expense was made.
Commission chairman Leroy Wetta asked Jim Herzet, acting road and bridge superintendent, what the cost would be to purchase three motor graders currently under a lease-purchase contract.
Herzet said he did not have the information available regarding the buy-out amount. Wetta said he would like to see the county purchase the graders instead of paying $200,000 per year for the leases.
Carter Frantz said a contract would need to be considered soon to plan for aerial photographs in February.
Discussion followed regarding republishing the budget with statements being made the budget would need to be republished anyway to spend any of the FEMA funds.
Maggard said republishing in 2004 was necessary to encumber funds for 2005.
Wetta said he would like to see all of the county "wish lists" before considering this expenditure. He added he would like to see the FEMA funds be used for early pay-offs of lease-purchases and other term contracts.
The topic will be on Monday's agenda.
