Tanglewood caught in dilemma over status of roads, public or private

By Charlene Sims, info@linncountyjournal.com

MOUND CITY – Linn County Commissioner Jason Hightower summarized his meeting with Tanglewood Lakes president of the board and another resident to the commissioners on Monday, April 21.

Hightower listed the requests that the residents that he talked to would like to:

• Have a motion or resolution that covers the understanding of the roads being public;

• Talk with the commissioners about possible partnership items that could be done to help both entities;

• Utilize the buying power so that when the county puts in culvert orders if they could reach out to lake communities and see what they need, not having the county pay for the culverts but placing them in the same order, this would also include traffic sign orders, road salt orders;

• Work with the county on rock hauling. A set number of loads to be delivered to set locations within an area like Tanglewood. Possibly the county could do that as they are hauling from the Cadmus Quarry and as they’re going back to La Cygne with the truck. At the end of the day, a load could be delivered for them along they way;

• Have the county consider setting some criteria to plow the main roads within the lake development. They suggested for snow over 6 inches when there was a major snowstorm;

• Ask the county to notify them if they had equipment to sell. They said it would sure be beneficial if they could source equipment locally;

• Find out if a neighborhood watch would require county approval;

• Have planning and zoning code enforcement and;

• Have dumpsters two days a year, in the spring and the fall.

Commissioner Alison Hamilton said, “Well, that’s a lot. I’m not going to say yes or no at this time.”

“I’m not asking you to,” said Hightower.

“We could definitely look into each request and see how that’s, I mean, let’s just take the culverts for example. How can we throw in a bid on a culvert for someone else?” asked Hamilton. “I think that gets really confusing on how they are going to pay for it but it’s still ran under a Linn County bid and then separating that out.  “Like, I just don’t see how that would work us, but I think it’s a longer discussion than at this table. Probably more of a workshop with Tanglewood.”    

“Well, it’s just not Tanglewood,” said Commission Chair Jim Johnson. “We’ve got a lot of others.”

Hamilton said that if this was opened up to Tanglewood, it would go to every other lake community. She said that some of the requests seemed doable like the signs.                                                                                                                                                                                             

Johnson pointed out that the county did not have to pay taxes but the lakes are a taxable entity.

At Hamilton’s request, Hightower repeated the first request. Tanglewood Lakes wanted a motion that covers that the roads are private and they will continue to be private roads.

“I’ve not seen anything yet have you guys that its changed anything as far as where they are as far as whether they are,” said Johnson.

Johnson said that the way it stands with him right now is that they are private roads.

“I think we need to get with legal on the resolution. Have her have a draft and we need to present the draft to Tanglewood,” said Hamilton. “I’m okay with moving forward with the resolution on public roads. Everything else I feel like could be tabled for a workshop to figure out exactly what we can legally help them with.”

Tanglewood resident Jim Hendershot told the commissioners that, due to what the plat shows and the judge’s decision, the roads are public roads and the gates have been opened right now.

“It would be our desire that in this resolution if there was one that establishes that the roads are private, that the issues that Commissioner Hightower has brought up, that we brought up to him, that are agreed upon be in that resolution so that there’s no question going forward, as to what was agreed upon, what wasn’t,” said Hendershot. “In that way, we’re not having the roads declared as private and then some day getting back to these other issues.”

Hendershot told the commissioners that he did not feel that anything that Hightower presented was of great expense or burdensome to the county in anyway. He said it was an issue where our residents, every lake resident in every lake community in Linn County, have paid our taxes, in our case for 55 years and have got little in return for those taxes.

“I just don’t think that that’s going to work but I would have to refer back to our legal. I don’t think that all these stipulations that you are trying to establish if you have public or private roads, and you’re going to throw a whole umbrella over all these other things you want,” said Hamilton. “I just don’t see that being the right way to go, but it’s going to have to go through legal.”  

Hightower verified that with Hendershot that Tanglewood does pay sales tax. Hendershot said yes.

Hendershot explained that Tanglewood representatives would be meeting with the sheriff to try to get an increased presence at Tanglewood. He said he would appreciate the commissioners support with this issue.

At the end, Don Bendetti, a Tanglewood landowner, added that he hoped a decision could be made quickly because, since the decision was made that the roads are public, the roads have not been maintained at all. He said they were told not to.

Bendetti said the roads were getting really bad and after the rain the last couple of days, they are really bad. He said they were anxious to start repairing the roads but we can’t touch them.

Hamilton asked Bendetti who said that they could not touch the roads.

Bendetti answered that it came from the judge. Bendetti said he may be wrong, but he said that they did receive something saying that Tanglewood cannot touch their roads until a decision is made as to whether they are public or private. He thanked the commissioners.