The county owned Pine Creek Saddle Club property may soon be up for sale.
During Monday night’s regular monthly meeting, the county commission voted to approve a recommendation from the Revenue Research Committee to sell the Pine Creek Saddle Club property on Four Seasons Road after an appraisal has been conducted. However, the commission tabled the committee’s recommendation to also sell property behind the Smithville City Police Department.
By selling certain unused county owned properties, Committee Chairman Larry Green said the county could take revenue from the sales and apply it to other county needs.
Meanwhile, the commission Monday night also approved the revenue committee’s recommendation for the county to look into the possibility of establishing a building permit system through which the county could collect fees on inspections of new construction rather than the state. Final action by the commission is pending a more detailed plan to come later.
According to committee chairman Green builders currently obtain their permits online through the state and the state gets all the revenue from them. The idea is for the permits to be issued by the county and for the county to get the fees.
“It (permit issuance) will still be online with a copy going to the building inspector who will issue the permit and a copy goes to the tax assessor. It’s the same building codes they use now. Its just who gets the revenue from the permits, the state or county. “We would eventually need a local building inspector,” said Green.
The committee’s hope is that sufficient revenue would be raised through such a local permit program to not only fund the building inspector position but for other county needs.