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County approves private-property debris contractor; state pause stalls waterway clean-up
Summary
Mitchell County approved CrowderGulf as the private-property debris-removal contractor and set a timeline to begin work within weeks, while state environmental concerns have paused waterway debris removal that county officials say they need to reduce future flood risk.
The Mitchell County Board of Commissioners approved the selection of CrowderGulf as the county’s contractor for private-property debris removal and authorized the county manager to complete legal review and negotiate final rates. County staff said the contractor could begin clearing private-property debris within one to two weeks of finalizing the contract, subject to FEMA eligibility checks and state approvals.
The program covers debris in the improved area around residences — the area typically mowed and used as the homeowner’s yard — and can include leaning trees that threaten homes, garages or outbuildings. County staff said private-property debris removal will be voluntary and require a signed encroachment or hold-harmless agreement from property owners; FEMA and the state would reimburse 90% of eligible costs, staff said.
"This should be FEMA and state reimbursable, so there'd be no cost to individual property owners," a county official said in the meeting.
County staff told commissioners they had received roughly 400 private-property work orders ready for scheduling and that monitors will accompany crews to confirm eligibility. The county also asked that residents pile debris close to the improved area (generally the yard and driveway edge) so crews can access and remove it efficiently.
At the same time, county officials reported a temporary state pause on waterway debris removal. The pause, described by staff as a state environmental action, arose from concerns about damage to aquatic habitat — staff cited state interest in protecting certain mussel species — and halted planned operations to remove vehicles and large debris from rivers and creeks.
County staff warned commissioners the pause could magnify flood risk by leaving river obstructions in place: "If they revisit this and it ends up that we're not able to run our equipment in the rivers and in the creeks to remove our debris ... we're fragile right now," the county manager said, urging state and federal officials to permit removal before heavy rains.
Commissioners approved the motion to select CrowderGulf and gave staff authority to finalize the contract after legal review and rate negotiation. Staff said the county will set a not-to-exceed budget cap for private-property debris removal similar to previous public-rights-of-way cleanup contracts and will coordinate with FEMA to confirm reimbursement eligibility.
Next steps: county staff will finalize the contract with negotiated rates, request FEMA pre-approval for a sample of work orders, and begin clearing eligible private-property piles as monitors confirm eligibility. Efforts to resume waterway removal depend on state environmental review and federal approvals.
