Miami County commissioners approved a more than $2 million road asphalt concrete paving contract for this year that includes around $100,000 in paving of driveways at the county Fairgrounds that commissioners said badly need attention.

The contract was awarded June 27 to John R. Jurgensen Co. of Springfield for $2,058,924.

The fairgrounds driveway work was approved June 29 in another vote by commissioners. That work has an estimated cost of $100,902.

Commissioners said the work on the north-south entrance drive and the south entrance is badly needed particularly following the 2016 fair during which persistent rains made travel on the property difficult.

“This project is pretty much a direct result of torrential rains we had at last year’s county fair that made the north parking area very difficult to get out of for many folks,” Commissioner John “Bud” O’Brien said. “I think it is a project that is very much needed.”

Commissioner Greg Simmons said he would “concur that it is much needed.”

In other business, commissioners voted June 27, to ask the county Board of Elections to place on the November ballot a referendum of the rezoning of 50 acres in Concord Twp. from agricultural to residential use. This is the 18th time a referendum on the rezoning has been pursued since 1995.

The 50 acres owned by the Trafalgar Corp. is located at 1619 Monroe-Concord Road in the township’s unincorporated area.

The commissioners this spring again approved the rezoning, which was challenged by area residents in the referendum. The board of elections June 20 notified the commission the petitions had at least 173 valid signatures of registered voters, the number needed to place the zoning question before voters. The last referendum was in November.

The commission also approved a request by county Coroner Dr. William Ginn to contract for coroner investigator assistance with Susan M. Westfall, R.N. She will be reimbursed by the coroner’s office at a rate of $100 per 24-hour period for covering calls and any death scene investigations during that time. If covering a death scene, but not all calls, she will be paid $50 per death scene investigation.

The contract maximum for the calendar year was set at $5,000.

In addition, the commissioners:

Accepted a quote from Liquid Engineering Corp of Billings, Mont., to conduct in-service preventative maintenance inspection, cleaning and reports for the Brandt and the UVMC water towers, as requested by the sanitary engineering department. A maximum cost of $4,870 was approved.

OK’d the purchase by the development department of two Ford Escapes from Troy Ford for a maximum cost of $24,304 each. The trade in of three vehicles at $1,000 each also was approved.

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