Mills County considers $300,000 sign truck purchase, raises unsigned paved-road default to 60 mph

Jacob Ferro, Mills County Engineer, told the Board that the county needs a new sign truck quoted at $110,000 with an additional roughly $190,000 expected to outfit the vehicle for county use, a combined cost the minutes record as the current estimate.

Ferro also noted an administrative change effective July 1: unsigned paved roads will default to a 60 mph limit rather than 55 mph. The county will evaluate paved roads over the next six to 12 months to determine whether current limits or the new default are appropriate for particular stretches.

Ferro discussed localized road maintenance logistics, including negotiating to borrow Page County’s bump grinder at no rental fee to address bumps on 221st Street; he said Page County previously borrowed the county’s shouldering machine as part of reciprocal resource-sharing talks.

Sheriff Greg Schultz reported that several patrol vehicles were out of service over the weekend while deputies responded to calls and said the department will need to purchase additional vehicles in the future.

Separately, the Board approved several procurement actions on motions recorded in the minutes: purchase of a copier from Visual Edge for $4,300 with a $25-per-month maintenance agreement for 12 months (Treasurer Melissa Loghry); purchase of a ceiling microphone for the boardroom from Heartland Systems for $5,176.04 (IT Director Patrick Binns); and approval to establish an Amazon account limit under Auditor oversight. Each procurement motion passed 3–0.

The minutes also note routine committee updates and the Board’s adjournment at 9:43 a.m.