Acting County Road Supervisor Shane Cheeney has been appointed to a four-year term as the head road supervisor by the County Board of Highway Commissioners.
Board chair Paul Donohue said interviews with the three applicants for the position were held Aug. 26 during an open meeting at the council chambers in the County Courthouse in Pioche.
Others who applied were Duane Wadsworth and Jason Lloyd, both of whom are county road department employees.
Following the supervisor selection, Donohue said a committee consisting of himself, Dr. Adam Katschke, Shane Cheeney, and an at-large person from the public who has not yet been selected, was formed to review the applications received for the positions of one mechanic and two operators.
He said there have been a few names of experienced people suggested for the at-large member of the committee.
Donohue said having a committee might not normally be necessary, but they have had over 50 applications for the three positions open, and said the committee is needed to sort through the applications to weed out those that are the lesser qualified.
He said he was pleased to have that many applications. “It affects you in two ways, and all at the same time. It kind of shocks you that there are so many choices, but also makes you feel good that there are that many interested.”
It is hoped the mechanic and operator positions will be selected and submitted for approval to the highway board at their next regular meeting Sept. 16.
Cheeney has been employed by the road department since 1989, first as a laborer, and has worked his way up the ranks, including the past 10 or more years serving as assistant supervisor under the now retired Steve Chouquer.
Donohue said he was happy to have the position finally filled. “We’ve been short handed for two months this summer, and we needed to get moving, get up and running, and get things back to normal.”
Cheeney has been doing a good job serving as acting supervisor, Donohue said. “On his own, Shane and secretary, Johnnie Jacquot, have been keeping accurate records of how many tons of asphalt, how many hours, what kind of equipment, fuel, costs, labor, etc, that is being used in each town.
They can tell you right down to the penny what we have done in each community.”
The value of that, he explained, is the data “gives a breakdown, clear down to costs, of what we’re spending in each community. It makes it easier to keep it even. For example, if we are spending $30,000 in Pioche one month, and only $8,000 in Alamo, then we know the next trips better be to Alamo, just to keep it even.”
Board members decided not to seek to hire a person for the discussed project manager position. “Dollar wise,” Donohue said, “that has died on the vine. The idea we really want to do doesn’t fit into county roads. We chose to spend those monies on crewmen rather than a project manager.”
