Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Hibbs assures quality service by NCAS

Nick Hibbs, who's working to purchase the Nevada County Ambulance Service, assured the Nevada County Quorum Court quality service would continue.

Hibbs, speaking to the court Monday, Feb. 9, said he's been a paramedic about five-and-a-half years. At this time, he said, work is being done to get the documentation for the sale finalized so he can take it over.

Once the sale is final, Hibbs said there are some problems to be addressed, and plans are to modernize services. Personnel issues will also be dealt with, he added.

One of the things Hibbs wants to do is make the NCAS more visible throughout Nevada County. He plans on having CPR classes for citizens as well.

People will still be able to buy memberships with the NCAS. Basically, he said, the services offered before will remain intact, just improved.

Work is underway to repair the NCAS building by the old Nevada County Hospital. Hibbs invited the public to come by, visit and see what's going on there.

"We will deliver quality care," he said. "We have two full-time crews and are working to get more people so we can have three crews."

Hibbs told the Justices of the Peace about his background, saying he's worked with Pafford Ambulance Service in Hope, also in Lafayette County and Nashville.

He promised to provide the court with an annual financial report on how the NCAS is doing. "I'd like to keep the subsidy from the county," he said. "We need it for equipment and some of the trucks need work."

Jon Chadwell, executive director of the Prescott-Nevada County Economic Development Office, reported to the court as well. He said a lot is going on and his office is being kept busy.

The fourth leadership class is underway, he said, kicking off with the retreat at Grand View Plantation. He said the session on state government should be interesting when the class goes to Little Rock later this month with the situation in education what it is.

Work on the combination fire station/parks department office on the east side of town will begin soon, possibly this week, depending on weather. This building will be across from Central Baptist Church.

Prescott Rubber Inc., he said, is essentially finished, with the final walk-through to be done. There have been some delays in getting the equipment in and installed, which has prevented the company from becoming operational before now.

PRI, he said, will start off by hiring 10-12 people and increase this to 40 within three years. The average wage at PRI will be $10-$12 per hour.

It is hoped, he said, to get the bids for the street project in Prescott in and work started before the end of the year.

Discussing the walking track project, Chadwell said an architect and Geo-technical people have been contacted and work should start on it soon. The track will be a half-mile around, with benches placed in different locations so walkers can rest. It will also be lighted for night use, with the surface being asphalt. The track will also be handicap accessible.

The Shop Prescott First campaign is underway, he said. The idea is to keep people in Prescott to do their shopping and, thereby, keep the money in town where it will strengthen the tax base.

Chadwell said he has helped write a grant for the Prescott-Nevada County Library. The grant is for $41,000, and if approved will be used to keep the library open on evenings and during the weekend.

It also includes a reading program for the young, where local citizens are videotaped reading books. These videos can be "checked out", Chadwell said, to help children learn to read better, as they can follow the video with the book in question.

He said the library should know in April whether the grant is approved or not.

He is also working on a grant for the Depot Museum and Library. The Depot, he said, has a lot of old newspapers dating back to the 1800s which need to be preserved. The grant, if approved, will be used to get the papers digitized and put on microfilm so the public can have access to them as well.

Rural water, he said, continues to progress. The tank on Highway 19 has been painted, and lines are continuing to be laid in different areas of the project. The rural water project, he added, should be completed by this October.

Chadwell was questioned about the status of an overpass or underpass for Prescott. He said he's worked with Mike Ross's office on this, but there is nowhere in Prescott to put an underpass.

However, the only feasible location for an overpass, he said, is by Oliver's One Stop on Highway 371. The cost of building an overpass will be about $3 million. "Right now we need to find the money," Chadwell said. "I hope there will be an avenue for this as it's a safety and transportation issue. It scares me when people race the train."

The overpass project, he said, will not be a quick one, but would be a multi-year project and there is a lot of preparatory work to be done before construction could begin.