Ashe County commissioners approve extra debris-contract spending, ask state to assume roadside-debris management

The Ashe County Board of Commissioners on Thursday approved a motion to authorize not-to-exceed increases for two storm-debris contractors and to request that the State of North Carolina take over administration of the county’s roadside-debris operations.

The decision followed extended public concerns about crews removing trees and vegetation off private property and about traffic-control standards around large debris-removal vehicles. County staff told the board the requested contract increases and the transfer of administration to the state would ease local cash-flow risks because federal and state reimbursements will cover the work.

Why it matters: The county is working under a federal/state reimbursement model tied to a recent declared disaster. County staff said reimbursement is approximately 90% federal and 10% state; the contract increases are being requested because current contracts have reached their limits. Residents said crews had cut healthy trees outside rights-of-way and created unsafe road conditions; contractor representatives said they will fire trucks or crews that fail to meet work directives and that the county and contractor database can trace which…