County commission keeps road open

HAMILTON — The Marion County Commission held a public hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 6, to discuss the possible closure of Walker Bottom Road, in the southeast portion of the county, with property owners.
The owners raised concerns over issues such as four-wheelers being driven down the road and damaging it, along with instances of dumping and confrontations with trespassers.
But after learning some of the property owners objected to the road’s closure as it would deprive them of their sole access to their property, the commission found it had no choice but to keep the road open.
The commission did discuss possible remedies to some of the issues brought up during the hearing, but no further action was taken.
In other business:
• The commission recognized county employees who recently completed a driver simulator training course, which included Logan Adkins, Kevin Crumpton, Rodney Lucas, John Reese, Cameron Taylor and Corey Webb;
• The commission heard reports from each department head about the previous fiscal year headed into the new one;
• Probate Judge Paige Vick said her department was working to update maps and finding ways to keep voters informed in light of new district lines on the map. Vick said voters will still be voting in the same precincts and voting locations, but the commission seat they are voting for might have changed since the last election;
• EMA Director Russ Taylor said his department applied for a Homeland Security grant that would go toward election security, and that his department is also working on an idea to create a database of private storm shelter locations which could be referenced with preliminary tornado tracks from the National Weather Service so volunteer fire departments could locate storm shelters that could be blocked by debris after a storm;
• Jason Clifton was hired as a part-time investigator, and Heath Jackson was hired as a deputy;
• The commission amended the agenda to also hire Tanner Burleson and Justin Williams to fill two more positions, with Tim “Ears” Estes abstaining due to being a relative of one of the hires.