Brian McCauley
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Miami County and PUA officials need to resolve permit issues
Editorial
By Brian McCauley, bmccauley@miconews.com
Miami County officials and members of the Marais des Cygnes Public Utility Authority are getting very good at a dance neither one should be dealing with at this stage of the water project being tackled by Paola and Louisburg.
Currently, excavation crews continue to carve out the pre-sedimentation basin at the plant site, pipeline is being placed underneath 343rd Street to tap the Marais des Cygnes River, and the foundation of a water plant is rising from the ground near 343rd Street and Victory Road.
Despite this progress, PUA officials still are lacking the necessary building permits to complete the project. Without the permits, there will be no water plant, no water tower southwest of Louisburg and no long-term supply of water from the Marais des Cygnes.
While it appears that the issuance of the permits is only a matter of time, both sides should be working more closely to ensure that no such loose ends are left on a project that is vital to the future water customers of both cities.
In a recent letter regarding the water plant, county development officials stated, “It appears that the site plan has changed, planning staff will need to review the revisions to determine if they are significant to the point where the planning commission would need to conduct a formal review.”
A similar letter was sent regarding the water tower that is planned to be built southwest of Louisburg.
PUA officials expressed frustrations on Monday, saying some county officials have been difficult to get a hold of and certain county departments have had trouble communicating with each other.
It is certainly necessary for the county to pay extra attention to a project that will span across the county map and cost more than $30 million, but it also is necessary for officials on both the development and regulation side to reach an understanding.
Let’s get these issues resolved and move forward with a project that already is greatly changing the landscape near 343rd Street and Victory Road.
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Currently, excavation crews continue to carve out the pre-sedimentation basin at the plant site, pipeline is being placed underneath 343rd Street to tap the Marais des Cygnes River, and the foundation of a water plant is rising from the ground near 343rd Street and Victory Road.
Despite this progress, PUA officials still are lacking the necessary building permits to complete the project. Without the permits, there will be no water plant, no water tower southwest of Louisburg and no long-term supply of water from the Marais des Cygnes.
While it appears that the issuance of the permits is only a matter of time, both sides should be working more closely to ensure that no such loose ends are left on a project that is vital to the future water customers of both cities.
In a recent letter regarding the water plant, county development officials stated, “It appears that the site plan has changed, planning staff will need to review the revisions to determine if they are significant to the point where the planning commission would need to conduct a formal review.”
A similar letter was sent regarding the water tower that is planned to be built southwest of Louisburg.
PUA officials expressed frustrations on Monday, saying some county officials have been difficult to get a hold of and certain county departments have had trouble communicating with each other.
It is certainly necessary for the county to pay extra attention to a project that will span across the county map and cost more than $30 million, but it also is necessary for officials on both the development and regulation side to reach an understanding.
Let’s get these issues resolved and move forward with a project that already is greatly changing the landscape near 343rd Street and Victory Road.