March 28, 2024

Eroding farmland a concern for Kellogg resident

Problems with a ditch line on the property of Kristie Wildung after a 2012 ditch cleaning were discussed at the Jasper County Supervisors meeting Tuesday. The property at 10964 N. 7th Ave. E. in Kellogg is adjacent to farmland that has begun falling into the ditch after an almost vertical reshaping.

“I’ve lived there 18 years and have never had this occur,” Wildung said. “The first time I drove past the ditch after it had been cleaned and actually went ‘Oh my gosh’ because it was that dramatic.”

Wildung contacted the county engineers office in June to make a repair plan and was told it would be treated like snow trap areas and repaired in the fall. The county put in cement chunks previously as a hold but even then, the chunk began sloughing into the ditch.

On Nov. 18, Wildung sent a letter to the county engineer’s office informing them the crop was out and that she saw they had put flags around the area. She also asked several questions about the repairs including how far into the field would the repairs go, what would happen with the chunks of cement, how would the fence be handled along with a request for 18 inches of top soil be placed for the farmland.

An appointment was scheduled for last Friday and after meeting with the County Engineer Russ Stutt and his associate Dennis Bucklin, Wildung was left unsure of the project, she said.

“Ultimately, Dennis ended up telling me that they wouldn’t set foot on my property, they aren’t going to reshape the property and in addition to that all they are going to do is throw dirt back up on the bank and throw a bunch of rip rap in and that’s suppose to fix it,” Wildung said.

Wildung said she does not feel adversarial toward the county or the engineer’s office but that she does need the repairs completed.

“I went out there last summer, the fence was hanging out in mid-air then, and since then we have had an awful lot of rain,” Board Member Denny Carpenter said.

The board agreed to go and look at the property and continue the discussion.

In other business, three part-time snow plow drivers for secondary roads were hired through April 30 on the recommendation of Dennis Simon in human resources. Wesley Arkema, Ryan Van Manen and Benjamin Frahm were approved for hire with no benefits by the board to help with snow removal on an on-call basis. Simon said it was customary to have additional help during the winter months.

A no parking zone was approved in front of TPI by the board to go along with the Newton city councils recent approval. Section 23 and 24-80N-19W on North 33rd Avenue East and East 28th Street North will now have no parking because of high semi-truck traffic and safety concerns with vehicles along the shoulder.

Additionally, Jasper County Sheriff John Halferty was approved for maintenance and support with Morphotrak, Inc.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at

641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or

jpierson@newtondailynews.com.