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Supervisors direct staff to draft engine/brake ordinance after complaints at Sullivan Slough Road
Summary
Following resident complaints about engine braking on Sullivan Slough Road, supervisors signaled support for a location-specific ordinance (with option to expand by resolution) and asked staff to work with law enforcement and utilities on enforceable language and signage.
County staff presented model ordinances from other Iowa counties and described a localized problem on Sullivan Slough Road, where homes sit about 50 feet from a steep grade. Deputies reported voluntary compliance so far but warned it may lapse; engineering and public-works staff favored a narrowly tailored ordinance limited to the problem location rather than a broad countywide ban.
"It's certainly a place that's on a steep decline...I'm glad to hear there's voluntary compliance," a law-enforcement official said during the work session. County engineering staff recommended limiting any ordinance to the specific location and allowing additional sites to be added by later resolution; staff cautioned that signage is enforceable only if the language is established by ordinance. The consensus direction to staff was to draft an ordinance that defines engine/compression braking and identifies the initial location, leaving open the option to expand by resolution if future complaints warrant it.
