A group of Cass County residents are seeking to recall two of the county’s five commissioners. 

Recall affidavits were filed against Commissioner David Nielsen of Weeping Water on Tuesday and against board chairman Ron Nolte on Wednesday, said Cass County Election Commissioner Nancy Josoff. Both affadivits alleged that the commissioners hadn’t represented their constituents in their decisions.

The filings came on the heels of a vote by the board of commissioners to uphold an earlier decision to halt construction on a $750,000 maintenance shed being built near Mynard.

Both Nielsen and Nolte have opposed building the shed, which they say is too big and costly for the county’s needs. 

The board of commissioners originally approved plans for the building, which would  be used as a storage shed, repair shop and carwash for county vehicles, last year.

But in December, three Cass County residents filed a lawsuit against the board asking for an injunction to stop the project. The lawsuit alleged that commissioners began work on the building without giving the public an opportunity to express support for or opposition to the plan.

After re-evaluating the road department’s existing buildings, the board voted 3-2 to permanently halt construction, and upgrade the county’s existing buildings instead, Nolte said.

That means that the county will lose at least $100,000 on dirtwork, engineering costs and contract buyouts. 

But ultimately, Nolte said he thinks the decision to abandon plans on the new building was the right thing to do.

“We have a lot of strong support across the county,” he said.

But there’s also what he described as a “vocal minority” of people upset with the decision.

Among those are Peg Taylor, a founding member of a group called Concerned Citizens for Responsible Government. About 30 Cass County residents — mostly those who were unhappy with decision to halt construction — attended the group’s first meeting on Sunday, she said.

At that first meeting, she said, two women — Evelyn Hans of Louisville and Josephine G. Pierce of Plattsmouth — volunteered to file the recall affidavits. 

“(Nielsen and Nolte) are making decisions that are going to waste money,” Taylor said. “That’s the main issue that’s causing problems right now.”

Nielsen and Nolte each have 20 days to file a rebuttal, Josoff said. After that, she said, Hans and Pierce will each have 30 days to collect enough signatures for them to recalled. In Nielsen’s case it would require 747 signatures and in Nolte’s 838, or 35 percent of the total number of votes cast when they were elected. If they do not voluntarily step down, a special election will then be held, Josoff said.

Taylor said she’s expecting more concerned residents to show up at the group’s next meeting, which is scheduled for March 25.

Nielsen could not be reached for comment, Tuesday, But Nolte said he didn’t think an effort to recall him would go very far.

“I’m not that concerned with it right now.”

Reach Cara Pesek at 473-7361 or cpesek@journalstar.com.