The Nevis council wants ATVs and other recreational vehicles to observe posted speed limits when driving through town.
The issue was brought to the council Monday night by council member Teresa Leshovsky.
“Do we have anything about 4-wheelers and side by sides going faster than the speed limit?” she asked. “I’m not talking about on the trails, but through residential neighborhoods. It’s getting to be a huge problem. Down here between Fifth Avenue and Main Street there’s a huge line of them that go ripping through here and I know they’re going at least 40 to 50 miles per hour from Friday until Sunday night back and forth. I don’t want to be the bad guy who calls Hubbard county every time. They’ve been busy. It’s crazy though. I have a kid on a bike and then Amy Post next door has her day care. There’s other young kids down that road.”
“They come by our house too,” council member Sue Gray said.
“The challenge is they’re supposed to follow the same rules as everybody else,” council member Jeanne Thompson said. “We have horrific noise issues where I live but unless there’s a police officer right there when it happens they don’t get caught. Part of it is asking the county for more coverage and that gets to be expensive.”
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Council member Rich Johson suggested Leshovsky and Gray talk to officer Josh Oswald. “Maybe see if he can sit there for a couple of weekends and catch some of them,” he said.
“You can talk to someone at Hubbard county when it’s happening and they can also take the information and pass it on to Josh,” she said.
“We’ve got the ordinance in place,” mayor Jarod Senger said. “I think we should just touch base with Josh.”
In other action, the council:
Approved Ordinance #52 establishing rules and regulations for temporary dwellings including travel trailers, motorhomes and fish houses in residential zones of the city. A permit is required, along with hooking up to city water and sewer. Contact the city office for more information.
Approved returning $200 the Nevis Women’s Club paid to reserve the council meeting room for 2020 since they have not been able to use it due to COVID-19. That room is planned to be used for the municipal liquor store expansion project and will no longer be available for meetings.
Waived city fees for watering the pollinator garden planted by the Nevis Women’s Club through Sept. 30 due to the limited opportunities for club fundraising this summer. Water use will be metered so the Women’s Club knows how much they used and can budget for the cost of water next summer.
Heard landscaping is underway to prepare Muskie Park for the installation of new playground equipment.
Adopted an internal controls policy for the Nevis Municipal Liquor Store.
Set the city budget meeting for 5 p.m. July 29.
The next regular council meeting will be at 6 p.m. July 13.
