Posted: 9/25/07
Priority list for bridge rebuilding projects in county is approved
By Charlie Warner
Argus Editor
Bridges, bridges, and more bridges ñ Houston County has scores of township, county, and state bridges spanning the myriad of creeks, streams, dry washes and rivers that meander through this corner of the state.
About 40 of those bridges will be replaced, rehabilitated or removed during the next five years. Houston County Highway Engineer Marcus Evans presented the county board with an amended bridge replacement priority list at the September 18 board meeting. Each county in Minnesota is required by Mn/DOT to prepare a priority list of bridge work for the next five years. The priority lists help Mn/DOT prepare bridge bonds
The Houston County priority list was amended somewhat, following the August 2007 floods, Evans noted. He also explained the county maintains bridges on both county and township roads and in most years plans to repair or rebuild three county and three township bridges each year. Because of the extensive damage to the bridge system in Houston County, Evansí list includes 15 projects for 2008.
The first two entries on the list are bridges on Yucatan Township roads that are currently under construction. They are:
ïBridge #7531 on Creamery Drive spanning Riceford Creek,
ïBridge #7532 on Creamery Drive spanning on un-named stream.
FEMA funded projects
The next six projects on the list are bridges that were damaged in the August flash floods and are assumed eligible for FEMA funding. These projects are scheduled to be conducted in 2008:
ïBridge #7555 on CSAH 26 spanning Campbell Creek,
ïBridge #1361 on Bush Valley Road (Mound Prairie Township) spanning an un-named stream,
ïBridge #1681 on Cork Hollow Drive (Brownsville Township) spanning Wildcat Creek,
ïBridge #5558 on Perkins Valley Drive (Money Creek Township) spanning Money Creek,
ïBridge #L4580 on Torgerson Drive (Houston Township) spanning an un-named stream,
ïBridge #L4581 on Traff Drive (Houston Township) spanning an un-named stream.
Other projects for 2008
Nine additional bridge projects are earmarked for 2008. They include:
ïBridge #28502 on CSAH 9 spanning Silver Creek,
ïBridge #7075 on CSAH 10 spanning Beaver Creek,
ïBridge #1332 on CSAH 20 spanning Sullivan Creek,
ïBridge #7558 on CSAH 31 spanning Winnebago Creek,
ïBridge #6936 on CSAH 32 spanning Crooked Creek,
ïBridge #L3993 on South Prairie Drive (Wilmington Township) spanning a dry run,
ïBridge #305 on Elm Drive (Spring Grove Township) spanning Riceford Creek,
ïBridge #L3972 on Quarry Road (Winnebago Township) spanning a dry run.
Next four years
Evansí list included two dozen more projects earmarked for the next four years, with the current project roster ending in 2012.
Evanís five-year priority list was approved as a resolution by the county board by a unanimous vote.
A big thank you
Following an update on the massive road and bridge repair project the county highway department has been grappling with since the August floods, Board Chairman Ann Thompson told Evans his entire staff needed to be commended for their excellent work.
"You and your staff have gone above and beyond during the past month," Thompson said. "The amount of damage our county and township roads sustained was enormous and the county highway department has worked so hard."
"You really donít know what people are made out of until something like this happens," Evans replied. "Our staff has really worked so hard dealing with the flood damage. The volunteer help we received from other counties, Mn/DOT and the private sector has been amazing."
"Although we have made quite a bit of progress in the past four weeks since the floods, people need to know, thereís a lot of work to be done, and many dangerous situations out there," Commissioner Dave Corcoran cautioned. "People need to stay on the roads, drive slowly, and stay off the shoulders. The road might look fine, but many of the shoulders have been undercut by the floodwaters, and need to be repaired."
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