Steel wheel vehicle ordinance suspended in Mitchell County
Jean Caspers-Simmet
Date Modified: 11/12/2009 9:04 AM
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Agri News staff writer
OSAGE, Iowa -- The Mitchell County Supervisors suspended the county's ban on steel wheel vehicles on hard surface roads for 60 days so farmers with steel wheels can complete harvest.
A motion by supervisor Stan Walk to suspend the road protection ordinance for 60 days or to the end of harvest received unanimous support at last week's regular board meeting.
"After that, the rubber has to meet the road," said supervisor Walk.
State Rep. Mark Kuhn spoke on behalf of the farmers with steel wheels for the third time in a week.
He said he wanted to address the unintended consequences of the ordinance, which will stop business at the Cedar Valley Produce Auction located on Addison Avenue. The auction had $1.65 million in sales in 2009. Kuhn showed a poster of the auction and a map of the Iowa Groffdale Mennonite Community, which consists of 105 families in Howard, Mitchell, Floyd and Chickasaw counties. He said there have been 3,275 bidders so far in 2009 who bought vegetables, flowers, hay, straw, horses, pumpkins, quilts and crafts. About 75 percent of the total annual sales are brought to the auction by farmers with steel wheels.
"If the ordinance is enforced, 75 percent of the total volume of business at the Cedar Valley Produce Auction would cease because farmers couldn't get their produce to market," Kuhn said.
He said Addison Avenue shows no damage to the road as a result of small steel-wheeled tractors. E&E Welding, south of the produce auction, Farmland Hardware, west of Elma, both on hard surfaced roads, and the Elma Lumber Yard would be impacted by the ordinance. Kuhn said the farmers with steel wheels were requesting voluntary mediation with the board. Supervisor chair Bob Marreel said he didn't see how the board could engage in mediation in closed session.
"I fail to see what could come of it that we haven't already discussed from Feb. 3 until today," he said.
"Our concern was when we started laying down the white topping, the cement," said supervisor Stan Walk. "The blacktop on Addison may not be damaged, but we can definitely show damage on the white toppings. We're going to continue to put down more white topping. It's economical. It lasts longer. We cannot afford not to do it."
Kuhn said steel-wheel farmers aren't ready to commit to a date certain to convert steel cleats to rubber.
"The only thing holding you up is rubber," said supervisor Joel Voaklander. "Is it worth it? I can't understand. Explain to me why steel is so important."
"We are in a conference of many different states," said Peter Nolt, a farmer who uses steel wheels. "We can't just change stuff without the conference."