Bourbon County Commission Agenda 10.06.25
October 06, 2025, 5:30 PM
Building Health, Inc. CareVan – General Public Transportation Letter of Support
Becky Gray, Executive Director of Non-profit, Building Health, Inc., spoke about her organization’s CareVan program. The program offers general transportation in Bourbon, Crawford, and Cherokee Counties, as well as non-emergency medical rides.
“The riders’ experience is, I think, world-class, particularly for southeast Kansas,” she said. Their drivers are trained through the Kansas Rural Transit Association program from KU.
All of their vans are ADA accessible. They provided 2300 rides in Bourbon County last year, 1,600 of them were general transportation, the remainder was to get them to non-emergency medical appointments. They transport throughout the region, including to Kansas City, Joplin, and Tulsa. Primary pick up places are Fort Scott, Redfield, Bronson, Arcadia, and other small communities.
CareVan shares the road with CCAP. By tracking the requested rides they are unable to provide, but have referred to CCAP, Gray said about 22 rides per month go unserved. She said this shows the need for additional transportation services in Bourbon County.
“We’re trying to fill that,” she said. However, KDOT requires local match money to help support the general public transportation program. Her organization bills individual insurance plans for the non-emergency medical transportation they provide to meet that requirement.
She is asking for a letter of support to help their organization’s grant application to KDOT
CareVan provides transportation Mon.-Thurs. 7:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., Fri. 7:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Call 833-228-7433 to request a ride.
Commissioner Mika Milburn said the commission would like to sign it next week, when Commissioner Samuel Tran is back.
Dereck Ranes with Noise Complaint
Ranes came back to the commission to ask for a moratorium and a noise resolution regarding the bitcoin mining natural gas generators near his property, which he spoke with the commission about last week. He referred to the moratorium the commission placed on solar panels.
“We’ve lived there 6 years, and the last two years is nothing but stress,” he said. “The noise is overbearing,”
He was told by the owner of the company that operates the generators that he would do something to mitigate the noise if he got the generators working 24 hours, 7 days a week, but he has done nothing.
Ranes also expressed concern about rumors that the lessor is trying to purchase the land for expansion. He has also heard they are going to drill two new wells, and that there are people working in there at all hours.
“I wouldn’t be here if I couldn’t hear it in my house,” said Raines.
Ranes said that the stress of having the constant noise is taking a toll on him and his family.
Neighbor Kimberly Sparks lives 3/4 of a mile away and can hear the humming and feel the vibration constantly. “It’s very upsetting,” she said.
“I’m concerned that it’s going to get bad,” she said of unregulated development in the area. She suggested a noise ordinance or a moratorium.
“We’re going to do something. It’s just we gotta be sure we’re doing the right thing,” said Commissioner David Beerbower.
Milburn said she had contacted the administration of Jefferson County to get their information on how they handled this issue.
Ranes said he appreciated the commission’s attention.
Milburn said it’s staying on the county commission’s agenda.
Jill Franklin, neighbor of Raines, lives a mile away and can still hear it. She referred to ChatGPT finding of a 2020 noise ordinance in Bourbon County for wind turbines, saying they cannot be louder than 45dB measured at the nearest nonparticipant dwelling. It was not a countywide thing, but a project-specific ruling.
Sheriff Bill Martin
Martin said his department is doing everything it possibly can regarding the Evolution Technology natural gas generator noise.
Martin said that Jefferson County had their resolution in place before any similar facilities moved in to their county.
He said the commission can make a resolution or moratorium; however, by state statute, he doesn’t enforce it. The county would have to hire personnel to follow up and enforce any moratorium or resolution.
His department will continue its investigation per KSA216204. He will send the report to the county attorney, who will make the final determination about whether a crime is being committed or charges will be filed.
He said if Ranes and his neighbors want to follow up with the Kansas secretary of health and environment, they have their own investigators and do not use the sheriff’s department.
“I understand where the family and residents in that area are coming from, but I can only do what the statute allows me to do,” said Martin.
He expressed concern that a resolution wouldn’t solve the issue because you can’t punish someone after the fact, but it will become a civil issue.
Virginia Macha runs a small group that has been “rather busy” especially when it comes to the Kansas Corporation Commission.
She mentioned problems with using abandoned wells that have been capped by federal grant funding. These wells near Ranes’ property were on the plug list, and for them to repurpose it is odd, she said. She is concerned for public safety. The KCC should have addressed this and gotten something done about directly sourcing power to a data center so the Department of Revenue can collect its taxes.
Heather Etheridge asked how close the data centers are to water and what will happen if one of them catches on fire.
“We really need to keep an eye on this. This is something huge,” said Etheridge.
Beerbower handed out a rough draft of the moratorium they will talk about next week.
Martin asked that those who had turned in affidavits stay available to the deputy who will be talking to them to create the report to be given to the county attorney.
Public Works — Kenny Allen and Dustin Hall
Hall said his department needs to purchase a walking floor trailer for the landfill at $85,000. They haul trash to Allen County every day. When they started they were doing $300,000, in trash hauling with two trailers, now they are doing about $700,000. One of the current trailers has a leak in the hydraulic line and must be taken out of service to be fixed. Purchasing a third trailer will allow them to have three in rotation. The plan was to purchase next year after the building is paid off.
Milburn asked how they would fund the purchase. Hall said the landfill has the money to buy it.
They brought the issue to the commission because it is a purchase over $25,000. Commission approved.
Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda
Heather Etheridge, president of West Plains and Centerville Cemeteries, spoke to the commission about the need for better record-keeping for the cemeteries and more volunteers. As people are getting older and dying off, nobody wants to take care of the cemeteries. It’s a voluntary position.
She showed them the maps and how they keep track of who owns which plots. Most of the cemetery records are in the hands of very elderly folks and no one younger is stepping up to help.
“All this information’s going to be lost,” she said. “It should be a huge concern.” People have invested money and need to know who owns which plots and what’s available to purchase.
They had to pass a resolution stating that if someone claimed a family member owns a particular plot, they need to show deeds, or if the deed is lost, explain what happened.
“We have got to do something,” she said. There are approximately 100 cemeteries in Bourbon County, but no centralized records anywhere.
Etheridge gave the example of Allen County, which has one person in charge of all of their cemeteries.
“We need someone,” she said. “I would do it, but I don’t want to do it for free.”
Beerbower said that 13 cemeteries in the county get tax levies. He said the county can’t intervene unless a cemetery comes to them for help. “The biggest hurdle is to get everybody together,” he said.
Etheridge agreed and said the issue is that cemetery administrators are volunteers.
Milburn suggested Etheridge take a look at the national cemetery record system, which may help with the creation of a way to track plot ownership and who is buried where.
Old Business
Road Closure 140th Street
Milburn and Beerbower voted to take no action on the application for road closure for 140th St.
Gov. Deals
“Nobody bought anything,” said Beerbower of the old hospital equipment that was left to the county. He spoke with KDHE about what to do with the X-Ray machine and is awaiting a response.
Milburn moved to trash the rest of the items. Beerbower said he would determine what is junkable and what is scrap. They also discussed allowing the people of Bourbon County to pick it over.
They decided to bring it back up in two weeks.
New Business
Credit Cards – Milburn
Milburn said the county has a lot of credit cards. She asked if they wanted to start a discussion on a different way to handle it.
County Clerk Susan Walker said that many of the cards are assigned to department heads. She said Public Works, Sheriff, and EMS use them the most. Much of the time they are used for travel.
The county requires itemized statements for each purchase. Milburn wants to collect every single receipt. Walker said some departments are more vigilant than others. She mentioned a policy and procedure that revokes credit cards for those who fail to turn in receipts. Milburn said they could move to a reimbursement system, but that would lead to the county paying sales tax when they shouldn’t have to as a government entity.
Walker offered to provide a Standard Operating Procedure example from when she was at the City of Fort Scott for the commission to look at.
They tabled the issue until Oct. 27.
Voting Delegate KCAMP KAC Conference
Susan Walker is attending this year and has offered to serve as the Bourbon County Delegate.
KDEM (FEMA required documentation)
Needed for the county to receive FEMA funding. Milburn wanted to wait until Tran is back. Beerbower agreed.
Build agenda for following meeting
The commission set a special meeting for Oct. 14 at 4 p.m. just prior to their rescheduled meeting at 5:30 that evening. The meeting is on a Tuesday because Oct. 13 is a holiday.
Commission Comments
Milburn: Thanked citizens and commission members. The budget levies less money than last year. “I think that’s a great accomplishment.”