Roads are the main issue as the incumbent and Mahaska County Board of Supervisors chairman is being challenged by an independent in this year’s race for a board seat.

Willie VanWeelden, 62, a Republican, has been on the Board of Supervisors since 2000. VanWeelden has lived in Adams Township since 1971 and is a former dairy farmer. He sits on a number of multi-county boards and is the chairman of the Mahaska County Agency on Aging.

Don DeHeer, 65, an Independent, moved to Mahaska County in 1996. He has been self-employed since 1972 and runs a steel warehouse and a recycling yard. Before moving to Mahaska County, DeHeer lived in Pella for 54 years. He ran for the Democratic nomination for the Marion County Board of Supervisors in the early 1990s.

DeHeer said improving the secondary road system is important. He said in the past six years he has seen minimal road maintenance. He said more rock needs to be put down, ditches need to be cleaned up and some roads need to be raised.

“In general, I think our secondary road system needs to be addressed,” DeHeer said.

VanWeelden said there have been four recent disaster declarations in Mahaska County and gravel roads have taken a beating. From the disaster declarations, the county could receive approximately $900,000 in federal aid to repair and maintain roads. He said there is a higher volume of traffic and more semi tractor-trailers using gravel roads, and that has taken its toll. He said the county will spend approximately $2 million on rock for gravel roads this year, up from the average of $1 million.

“Under the circumstances, we’ve done pretty good,” VanWeelden said.

VanWeelden said the Board of Supervisors will meet with feed and hog companies to encourage them to use hard-surface roads as much as possible and try and cut down on the amount of roads being torn up. He said he hopes to get some things accomplished before winter. DeHeer said he disagrees with embargoes for semis on some roads, but said heavy truck drivers need to give roads a rest when the weather’s bad. One solution he sees is upgrading more roads.

DeHeer said if he was elected, he would like to see the Board of Supervisors conduct meetings in the evening so people would have a better chance to attend. The meetings are currently held on the first and third Monday of each month at 9 a.m. VanWeelden said before he was on the board different meeting times were tried and people still didn’t attend meetings. He said CRI records the meetings and they are available on cable, but if there was a public demand for changing the meeting times, he would support it.

DeHeer said he would not have supported a regional airport at Site H, which was north of Highway 163 by Leighton, but was not necessarily against the regional airport concept. VanWeelden had been supportive of a regional airport. Pella has chosen a site by Otley for its new airport and does not appear interested in renewing regional airport discussions with Oskaloosa.

DeHeer said he wants to do work to cut expenses and lower property taxes if possible. He said with the economy the way it is, government budgets are going to be stressed. VanWeelden said there is not a lot of extra money in the budget.

VanWeelden said some of the needs of the county include pushing the state to put back on its five-year plan reconstructing Highway 63 from the rail bridge north of Oskaloosa to New Sharon. He said Lacey Blacktop will be resurfaced from Stewart corner to Spring Valley corner next spring. Another important project is to replace the bridge to Eveland Access across the Des Moines River. The project will use federal bridge funds and require approximately $800,000 in local funds, VanWeelden said.

On eminent domain, both candidates said it should be used as a last resort. DeHeer said it should be used limited to projects required for people’s safety. VanWeelden said he doesn’t agree with taking eminent domain for economic development.

VanWeelden said his accomplishments include supporting the formation of MHP’s New Directions in 2001 and supporting the one cent sales tax for school infrastructure and property tax relief in 2002.

DeHeer said he was not able to make it to two community forums due to prior commitments, which included speaking to the Fremont City Council during the MCCB candidate forum.