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Board tables tractor purchase amid debate over mowing, contracts and insurance limits
Summary
Longstanding mowing and snow‑removal challenges across three Park County airports led to extensive public comment and board debate. Members discussed buying a tractor, soliciting bids, hiring contractors, and limits that insurance and county rules place on non‑employees operating county equipment; the board tabled a purchase decision and agreed to place mowing/snow removal on the next agenda.
The board spent substantial time on a recurring problem: how to keep grass runways and ramps mowed and who can legally operate county equipment for mowing and snow removal. Board members and public commenters described patchy mowing at Mission Field, Gardner and Will Sall and urged the board to find a sustainable approach.
Multiple participants urged soliciting bids for private mowing and pointed to equipment costs — one participant said Deere and bush‑hog style equipment can cost "50 to $80,000." Several public commenters recommended hiring contractors rather than buying equipment the board might not be able to insure or operate. The Chair and county staff explained a key constraint: county equipment may only be operated by a county employee or a board member for insurance reasons, which limits using private contractors to operate county tractors or snowplows.
Given those legal and funding constraints and the lack of a clear funding source, the board agreed to table a tractor‑purchase decision and add a fuller discussion of mowing and snow removal (covering all three airports) to a future agenda. Several members suggested soliciting bids and exploring landing‑fee revenue or targeted user fees as possible funding sources; a public commenter proposed establishing landing fees for small aircraft to generate recurring maintenance revenue.
