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Harvey County planning board rejects minimum-maintenance designation for North Osage Road
Summary
After residents warned the change would delay emergency response and hinder farm access, the board unanimously voted to keep North Osage Road a maintained road rather than declare it minimum-maintenance under Resolution 2024-35.
Chair Justin Stucky presided over a Jan. 7 meeting of the Harvey County Planning & Zoning Advisory Board where members voted to keep North Osage Road a maintained county road after hearing sustained public concern about access and safety.
Zoning Director Rothe described sinkholes that opened on both sides of the road and summarized the county commission’s referral tied to Resolution 2024-35. Walton Township clerk Kelsea Abney told the board the lane closure had already affected 911 access, delayed EMS routes, and disrupted school-bus routing. Several farmers and landowners said heavy farm equipment relies on the south Osage connection because steep train tracks and flooding to the north often block alternate routes; one landowner, Tom Cowen, said he had not encountered such a hole in 38 years of farming. County Counselor Brad Jantz told the board that declaring a road minimum maintenance does not remove liability or maintenance obligations the way closing and vacating a road would, and warned that vacating was not feasible given existing homes and agricultural access.
Greg Claassen moved and Daryl Regier seconded a motion to keep North Osage Road maintained; the motion passed unanimously. The board advised Walton Township representatives to bring legal questions and repair recommendations to the county commission for further guidance.
The decision preserves county maintenance on the segment referenced in Resolution 2024-35 and leaves potential engineering or repair options to the commission and township officials for follow-up.
