Commissioners support ?fishing lottery? at county lake

Fishermen at Marion County Lake this summer may be able to win a fishing lottery conducted by Lake Superintendent Steve Hudson in cooperation with the Kansas Division of Wildlife.

The Marion County Commis?sion Monday approved Hudson developing the game by tagging prize fish this spring while KDW has them stunned for population study.

Varieties to be tagged for the contest, Hudson said, would include crappie, bluegill, catfish and black bass.

The exact number of fish to be tagged and the percentage of ticket money paid for prize are still to be determined, he said.

Hudson said one idea would be to have 75 percent of tickets sold going to the county lake for further fishing and recreation development while 25 percent would be distributed in prizes.

Another suggestion would have fishermen buying $3 tickets for each fish species they elected to fish for with a price break at $10 on a ticket for all four.

Hudson said state agencies have assured him the contest could be legally run as a lottery, with ticket purchases continuing to raise the available prize money amount until a tagged fish is legally taken.

Among potential problems for conducting the contest, Hudson said, might be if non-participating fishermen cheated by catching the fish, and passing them to friends with tickets, or if fishermen who caught them weren?t aware of the contest.

The commissioners approved Hudson spending about $60,000 in lake funds for a 455 D tractor for mowing and maintenance from Lang Diesel in Hillsboro.

Commission Chairman Randy Dallke, with the apparent agreement of the other two commissioners, told Peggy Blackman, head of the Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy district program she administers from Marion, that the county should delay making its annual $20,000 contribution to the program because of the difficult economic times it is undergoing.

Blackman assured the commissioners the contribution has been vital for the past three years in multiplying grant money to five or six times the county contribution for Marion Reservoir water purification studies and support.

Commissioner Dan Holub said he would like to see if the same money might be better spent for increasing water quality by helping farmers build conservation structures such as terraces.

Blackman said it is important to remember that Marion Reservoir is a vital part of a wider program with state priorities on its water for concerns such as keeping drought-stricken John Redmond Reservoir, downstream, with enough water flow to support communities there.

She said it may serve the county well to be in the forefront of future funding with communities like Peabody, Hillsboro and Marion coming due soon for water supply contracts at potentially much higher rates.

County Clerk Tina Spencer said the payday figure given last week should be reduced $100,000 to $723,697 because an entry was erroneously made twice.

Commissioner Roger Fleming said he would favor ordering demolition of the Florence motel if no bidder steps in to renovate it in the next year.

The commissioners noted there are more reports of vandalism of the structure with windows broken out on a weekly basis as it awaits a buyer for renovation.

Holub said he would like to see the county somehow reimbursed for the more than $30,000 in back taxes owed on the structure.

The commissioners granted H&S Land LC permission to quarry rock from another 15 acres near the city of Marion retail park.

The commissioners approved a bid of $55,527.54 for a steel semi-trailer for the transfer station from Steco Steel out of Arkansas over a bid of $63.284 from Steco Steel of Stockton with county pickup required.

The commissioners approved a bid of $1,697 for a treasurer?s office printer from Thomson-Rueters over competitive bids ranging to more than $2,000.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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