Caldwell County Surveyor Rick Tosh addressed fiscal court this week regarding some fears he has had for some time about the county clerk’s office having only paper records, specifically survey plats. He said that fear became reality in December when the tornado hit the courthouse in Mayfield and they lost most of their records.
click to download audioHe added that McCracken County and Marshall County have scanners to use for county records. He noted the Caldwell County Clerk’s Office only has paper survey plats and if the courthouse got hit like in Graves County, the plats would be unrecoverable.
Tosh suggested the county purchase a printer/scanner for the clerk’s office to scan records already on file as well as any new survey plats.
click to download audioHe said Paducah Blueprint has some used scanner/copier models that he is very familiar with that will scan in color but only prints in black and white. He added the machines also have capabilities to pull pdf files onto a thumb drive, if necessary, and it would also tie into the clerk’s office system.
click to download audioTosh stressed this is something that needs to be given great consideration.
When questioned about the availability of a grant to purchase a printer/scanner machine, Watson said there would be in the near future. She noted the company she deals with could get her a new scanner/printer for $11,000 but she doesn’t know how that would compare to the one Tosh uses. Watson also pointed out there would be more expenses than just for the machine, but she believes it’s a great idea.
click to download audioShe said there is a grant they need to apply for after action by the state legislature.
click to download audioTosh said the scanner/printer machine will not get a high volume of use once all the records are scanned.
It was also pointed out during the discussion that Deeds refer to property dimensions on the survey plat and if something happens to that plat, all that information is lost for that surveyed property.
