Spring cleaning; City offering free pick up of discarded household items.

It's that time of year again for a little city spring cleaning.

The city of Fort Scott has long provided a one-time only pick-up service for residents free of charge during the city wide "Spring Clean-up" program.

City crews will start at the south end of Fort Scott and work their way north picking up unwanted household items. Crews will not return for any additional pick ups during the two-week project, city officials said.

Residents south of Sixth Street can begin placing discarded items at the curb on Wednesday. No items should be put out after Sunday, city officials said. Crews will begin picking up the items on Monday, April 23.

Fort Scottians living north of Sixth Street should put their items at the curb beginning on Wednesday, April 18, and can do so until Sunday, April 29. City crews will begin those pick-ups on Monday, April 30.

Retrievals will take place from 7- 3:30 p.m. daily.

At the Bourbon County Commission meeting on Monday, Fort Scott Public Works Director Eric Bailey asked commissioners to waive landfill fees for the city trucks as "they have done before" for the clean-up. And commissioners approved the move.

Bourbon County Commissioner Allen Warren said while he "hates to give up that fee," it does help with community clean-up and residents appreciate that. Warren said it's hard to put a dollar amount on how much it costs for the county to waive those fees for two weeks.

Items that will be collected include: white goods (washers, dryers, dishwashers and hot water tanks); metal items; bulky household items such as furniture; TVs; and brush and limbs stacked separately from the other items to be discarded. Leaves will be accepted only if bagged and stacked separately from other items.

Items that will not be accepted are: whole trees, tree trunks or limbs larger than eight inches in diameter, household trash, tires, batteries, commercial construction materials, hazardous chemicals, refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners and paint containers.

For more information about the "Spring Clean-Up Program," contact City Hall at (620) 223-0550.

In other business:

* There was no meeting on Friday because all the commissioners went to Iola for the Spring 2012 Regional Summit about Project 17, a regional economic development initiative named for the 17 counties originally considered Southeast Kansas.

Commissioner Harold Coleman said he was impressed with the speeches.

"This guy from Neosho Community College really made sense about breaking the welfare cycle," Coleman said.

* All employees who work in the Bourbon County Rock Quarry attended the annual Mine, Safety and Health Administration training course on April 12. The eight-hour class is required for all county employees who go into the quarry.

After training, employees received a certificate that must be kept on them whenever they are in the quarry.

* The county received two bids for the Elm Creek Hay, one for $1,100 and another for $1,505. Commissioners accepted the higher bid submitted by Dwayne Neil.

For the first time, the county also accepted bids for landfill hay, but did not get any.

* Recently, commissioners approved donating two loads of gravel for the Youth Activities Team's Ellis Park project. The gravel would be for the parking lots and roads in and around the park.

But Warren said after thinking about it this past weekend, he wondered why the county couldn't donate a different type of gravel.

"I have a concern about pulling that into a park due to the fact that we've got plenty of roads we could use that on," Warren said.

After speaking with Bailey at the meeting, Warren said it was decided the county would donate another, smaller type of gravel, which the county has an abundance of. This also enables the county to donate more than the previously agreed two loads.

"This is just another example of how the county and city are trying to work together," Warren said.

* At the April 9 meeting, commissioners approved Resolution 11-12 following a public hearing. No objections were made. The resolution closes Willow Road, from 135th Street east to the Osage River, approximately a half a mile. This is in Section 35, Township 23, Range 23, Timberhill Township.