County Highway Department

**Tax Payer** · 05-05-2008, 08:15 PM

The Steuben County Department has started to mow the roadsides,the grass and weeds are almost 4" high. What a waste of taxpayers money. The manpower and materials would be much better spent and repairing the gaping holes in the pavement. I know the elected officials read The Fence Post and it would be in there best interest our money was spent wisely.

**Copycatted** · 05-05-2008, 08:50 PM

Originally Posted by Tax Payer

The Steuben County Department has started to mow the roadsides,the grass and weeds are almost 4" high. What a waste of taxpayers money. The manpower and materials would be much better spent and repairing the gaping holes in the pavement. I know the elected officials read The Fence Post and it would be in there best interest our money was spent wisely.

Know what you are saying about that Tax Payer,got an opinion of my own/ashes to ashes,dust to dust even weeds to weeds but even some elected Officials (yet) are not to keen that WAR IS NOT HEALTHY...

http://www.anothermother.org/poster.html

and thanks for the lead on that poster James...now if I got that much left from my stimulus money package (my whole exhaust system nearly needs replaced) I may know what to buy with it.

**armyda** · 05-05-2008, 09:34 PM

Originally Posted by Tax Payer

The Steuben County Department has started to mow the roadsides,the grass and weeds are almost 4" high. What a waste of taxpayers money. The manpower and materials would be much better spent and repairing the gaping holes in the pavement. I know the elected officials read The Fence Post and it would be in there best interest our money was spent wisely.

How is mowing roadways a waste of taxpayer money? Would Tax Payer prefer that the County wait till they are 4 feet tall? That will present a wonderful to those who wish to move into the County or think about locating a business in Steuben.

How many miles of roadway does Steuben County have. I think that will take quite a bit of time to take care of. Now if Tax Payer expects the County to mow them all in a week and patch the roads in a week, I wonder how much that will cost the other people who pay taxes?

**hairypumper** · 05-06-2008, 06:57 AM

Ground nesting birds need these strips of grassland to hatch and brood their young. With more and more farmland coming out of CRP these birds are losing habitat at an alarming rate. If the counties would wait until June to mow the chicks would be able to avoid the mowers. Mothers are killed by mowers because they will guard their nests at all costs.

**bigbass** · 05-06-2008, 01:15 PM

Originally Posted by hairypumper

Ground nesting birds need these strips of grassland to hatch and brood their young. With more and more farmland coming out of CRP these birds are losing habitat at an alarming rate. If the counties would wait until June to mow the chicks would be able to avoid the mowers. Mothers are killed by mowers because they will guard their nests at all costs.

I'm with you Harry, waiting a little longer won't be the deal breaker for someone wanting to buy a house or start a business. Who knows, the way everything is going green, it might even be a draw.

**flatbird1** · 05-06-2008, 04:13 PM

Birds, Smirds, not my problem.

**armyda** · 05-06-2008, 05:19 PM

Originally Posted by flatbird1

Birds, Smirds, not my problem.

Pretty Ironic considering your nick.

**hairypumper** · 05-08-2008, 08:12 AM

Originally Posted by flatbird1

Birds, Smirds, not my problem.

Apparently Flatbird is a big fan of ticks and mosquitos.

**james_t** · 05-08-2008, 10:00 AM

Originally Posted by blue adept

Does the flatbird nickname refer to roadkill?

I did that yesterday driving down IN 3. A robin flew right in front of me and I smushed it, unfortunately.

**Copycatted** · 05-07-2008, 11:32 PM

Originally Posted by bigbass

I'm with you Harry, waiting a little longer won't be the deal breaker for someone wanting to buy a house or start a business. Who knows, the way everything is going green, it might even be a draw.

And bigbass goes for the gusto to retain that hat by being an green thinker too

**Copycatted** · 05-08-2008, 12:32 AM

Originally Posted by hairypumper

Ground nesting birds need these strips of grassland to hatch and brood their young. With more and more farmland coming out of CRP these birds are losing habitat at an alarming rate. If the counties would wait until June to mow the chicks would be able to avoid the mowers. Mothers are killed by mowers because they will guard their nests at all costs.

That mowing part brought back an old memory hairypumper when 17 and during summer School break and working for the State Highway Department here in Angola.

Ha,when HQ went to file my application,whatever and I had already been on the job for a month or so but learned I was only 17 HQ called down and informed Angola I wasn't suppose to be behind the wheel of those dump trucks NO MORE though my ap stated I was licenced to be driving them and really? why I was hired in the first place (an insurance thing at 17). Until then I had it better off than even College Students working there for the summer.

That HQ find was a bummer,I even got bumped off of the mowing tractors and reduced to swinging a hand cycle along highways with others of the Summer crew to help git rid of the ever increasing Canadian Thistles I think they were called...a reletive Farmer educated me not that long ago that even an last years seedlings corn stalk growing in a bean field is a weed,point being I think we should have even pity on weeds that have a right to survive,somewhere (I mean before we git jack'n TOO MUCH with environmental upsetnesses...) so why not in these road way strips by letting them go more natural as opposed to being just simply pretty

Besides,look at all the money that could be saved by going from pretty to green when that money could be redistributed elsewheres in the transpitational Departments.