It's public safety and it's about fairness in property assessments.

That's what County officials say about the possibility of updating the County's aerial imagery. At last week's DeWitt County Board meeting, Assessor Sandy Schlosser told the Board this would be an equitable measure for her office. 

County Board members questioned if the cost was worth it for the Assessors office to recoup the what is sometimes lost but Schlosser told Board members there were four or five other County officials interested in this imagery.

Trent Pell with Eagleview Aerial Imagery told the Board they collect high-resolution images that are very in-depth and detailed. Additionally, they have found those images can have many purposes.

ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds have been requested to be used to fund this project. Board Chair Dan Matthews recommends doing one flight and setting money aside for more flights down the road.  

Some may balk at this proposal because it is an infringement on their privacy as land owners but Matthews believes the information on these images will be a little more in-depth than what is currently offered through using a program like Google Maps. 

There was no vote on pursuing the project. The presentation last week was strictly informational.