Osage Township residents report bad roads to commission

Nevada Daily Mail

Residents of Osage Township met with the Vernon County Commissioners Tuesday to discuss the issue of a road in need of repairs.

Carla Luther and Lisa Proctor both live along a half-mile of 1575 Road near the south end of the township, where the residents of seven homes have to deal with the significant potholes stretching along the entire length of the dead-end road.

"We drive in the ditches to get to our homes," Luther said. "We're to the point that we can't drive on the road."

Luther said the holes are deep enough to cause serious damage to smaller vehicles, saying one resident even made an insurance claim when a hole broke off part of the vehicle. Photos Luther brought to the commission showed that in some areas, the frame of the vehicle hits the ground when the tires enter the hole.

Proctor's family owns an RV, and she said she has to stand inside the RV and hold cabinets closed to prevent items from falling when they drive on the bumpy road.

"It's like a battleship at sea when we drive through there," Proctor said.

Julie Kimzey also attended the meeting and said Halley Road, which 1575 Road is connected to and where her property is located, also needs repairs.

Luther, who has lived in the area for more than 20 years, said the township used to take care of the roads, sending someone out to maintain it every quarter, but they have not had new gravel put in for almost a decade and some attempts to fill in the holes resulted in dirt being taken from her own front yard.

Luther said they contacted the township trustees concerning the problem, and even signed a petition, but have seen no results.

"They've told us all kinds of excuses over the years," Luther said, adding that she believes the trustees have a responsibility to the voters as their elected officials. "We don't know what else to do."

Presiding commissioner Joe Hardin said the commission will try to encourage the trustees to act, but the commission can not step in.

"It's hard for us because it's the township's responsibility," Hardin said. "We have no jurisdiction over the townships."

Hardin said the women did the right thing in first contacting the trustees and then bringing it to the commission's attention. He encouraged them to continue to try to contact the trustees and get others in the community involved as well.

The commissioners said they would likely look at the road that afternoon while inspecting other roads in the county. Hardin asked Luther to contact them again in a few weeks for an update.