 The county board's executive and economic development committee is
made up of the chairmen of various county committees. Their work in
this committee helps create a cohesive and comprehensive overview of
county business.
The committee is chaired by David Hepler, who is also planning
and zoning chair. Other members include Robert Farmer, board
chairman; Terry Carlton, road and bridge chair; Rick Aylesworth, law
enforcement chair; Bill Martin, building and grounds chair; Gene
Rohlfs, airport chair; and Chuck Ruben, finance chair.
Guests included Mike Maniscalco, executive director for the
Lincoln & Logan County Development Partnership; county board member
Jan Schumacher; and Jim Drew of the Logan County Farm Bureau.
Drew had come to clarify the Farm Bureaus position on the master
plan and to encourage the county to endorse it.
The Farm Bureau board unanimously confirmed endorsement of the
plan. Drew said he had gone over it thoroughly and saw the need for
some minor revisions. It was his opinion that it has
recommendations, but that there's nothing in there that's concrete,
and it contained nothing negative.
"I think it is an opportunity for the county to work as a unit. I
think we need to appear that way if businesses look into the
community," Drew said.
The board initially had several
concerns when the plan was presented, but at present seemingly only
two points remain an issue:
-
Language in it
identifies potential county tax revenues, primarily from wind
energy or other business property tax relief programs like
enterprise zone, as sources to fund future master plan
processes.
-
Committing to this
plan would obligate future board members. Ten months remain of
current board member's positions.
Ruben's concern is that the way the plan reads now, it looks like
the county would provide county taxes to hire consultants to further
the plan.
Addressing current conditions, Ruben recalled that the county
made 15 percent cuts to its department budgets this year. He wanted
to avoid perception that voting for the plan says "we're in favor
of providing that money. And, I want it made clear that we're not,"
he said.
In voting to endorse the master plan, Ruben felt that there needs
to be clarity about the potential spending of any county funds.
"There's no way I'm going to give them any money," he said, and
he didn't want it to look that way.
So, he felt that even though it is already board policy, he would
like to add to the motion to approve the master plan, that it would
require a two-thirds vote of the full board to expend any county
funds.
He, Rohlfs and other committee members did not want to create the
perception to the public or to future board members that there is
any obligation of county funds now or in the future by endorsing the
plan.
Rohlfs anticipated that the county would be expected and
pressured to support the things mapped out in the master plan. He
recalled that one of the points made to him in December 2010 was
that the implementation of this plan would be way too expensive for
any single entity of government to support. He pointed out that the
plan targets county funds and the county board.
He questioned: "Is going to be asked at every turn, and by all 18
committees, by all 10 consultants that they plan on hiring; we're
going to be asked, and asked and asked?" He commented that this
would not reflect well on the board if this began happening and the
board was constantly saying no to requests.
Further in the discussion, Rohlfs agreed with Maniscalco that in
a recession is not the time to sit back and do nothing -- that it is
important to plan for economic development.
"By the same token, that's the time to watch your nickels,"
Rohlfs said. He reiterated that he is not comfortable with this
plan. "There are going to be pressures down the road that will come
from that."
Aylesworth asked Maniscalco for his take on how the initiatives
in the plan would be implemented.
Maniscalco said his plans differed from his predecessor's, who
had targeted and planned on using wind energy tax revenue for
support. He said there are already a lot of things going on in our
county, such as at the news conference last week, Mayor Keith Snyder
said the city of Lincoln has already been working on numerous
different things that are in the plan. A lot of this is just
happening naturally.
"There are opportunities within the plan for partnering,"
Maniscalco said. "My thought is to make the things within the plan
happen collaboratively, and not rely on a certain stream of
revenue."
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Schumacher agreed that the county has had a reduction of
revenues, which is why there were cuts to departments.
She offered: "The other side of the equation is to create more
revenue. It's [with] a plan like this, that the hope and the intent
is that it will bring, obviously by name, ‘economic development,' to
the county; it will bring more jobs, more revenue."
She added: "I don't think the partnership will disregard the
board's concerns. I think they're realists."
Martin said he also shared the same concerns about the language.
He felt that it should not be a barrier and suggested: "When it
comes time for the language modification process, we need to see
that it gets changed."
Regarding the amendments, Maniscalco explained that it is part of
the plan to amend it as it is worked. But he said we need to have
the opportunity to get enough work done before we can make the
changes. He thought six months may be too short; more like a year is
needed.
Carlton looked on the plan as one that could be modified as it
goes. Chuckling, he said that meant it would happen slowly, as that
is the way government works.
He sees the master plan as a great opportunity to work together
with other entities on the future of Logan County.
"We are the leaders of Logan County," Carlton said. "We may not
agree on 100 percent of the plan. We need to lead. We need to just
go forward."
Carlton motioned to approve the economic development plan with
the understanding that any further funding by the county would be by
the county's standard rules on over-budget spending. It was seconded
and approved by straw vote when many "ayes" chimed together, and
only one "nay" was heard.
Hepler also suggested, and it was agreed by the committee, that
should the full board pass the endorsement, a letter would be sent
to the development partnership clarifying the county board's policy
on how it can spend funds.
The matter will be brought before the full board on Thursday
evening for discussion during the board of whole, with a likely vote
at its adjourned session on Feb. 21. Both meetings take place in the
ground-floor courtroom of the Logan County Courthouse.
[By
JAN YOUNGQUIST]
Logan County Economic Development Master Plan
(PDF)
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