County must update mapping system

According to a report from the Missouri State Tax Commission, Vernon County is out of compliance with an Assessment Maintenance Plan approved by the county commission and the tax commission.

The plan was established and implemented three years ago. At that time Tim Bourassa was hired to set up and complete the geographic information system plan. Bourassa has worked hit and miss on the plan because other duties have pulled him away from the plan at times. Bourassa has become the defacto Internet technician for the entire courthouse during his short tenure and that has kept him from implementing the final stage of the project.

The GIS mapping system in question is what County Assessor Cherie Roberts uses to accurately identify and assess properties in the county. According to Roberts, Bourassa has completed property record cards, work index cards, final alpha cards and other related forms and he has created several layers of digitized maps of the county that are all required for the GIS program to work. All that is left to be done is to update the mylar overlays, or parcel layer, that will be used by the assessor to identify each individual parcel of property in the county.

During a meeting with the assessor, county commission and tax commission, Bourassa was asked but could not produce a requested map because of the unfinished GIS program. According to the report, the system is not finished, so a timeframe and plan to finish have been implemented.

Presiding Commission-er Bonnie McCord has requested a list of items needed for complete installation for the GIS, which included a dedicated computer, mapping software, a plotter and training to operate the software. The tax commission requested a workable timeframe from the county that would cover the training, a review and editing of maps and updating the digitized mapping done thus far.

According to Roberts, the request for proposal needed to purchase the necessary items will go out immediately. A bid will be selected and the needed items purchased as soon as possible. A review of existing maps will be started by the assessors staff in a few days and the training will be done by Bourassa while he is updating the current maps. Roberts said she hopes "to be up and going by the end of August and fully operational with training" and everything by September.