County to begin prioritizing hard surface road projects

In weeks to come, Bourbon County Commissioners will be prioritizing a list of hard-surface road projects.

Public Works Director Jim Harris on Tuesday provided commissioners with a preliminary list of roads to be addressed in the summer.

The county began using a list to prioritize hard surface roads projects in 2014.

Harris said roads that have already been on the list have been "moved up" and other roads to be chip and sealed have been added.

"We're kind of back to the ones we did a few years back," Commission Chair Barbara Albright said. "Now we need to top them with a little chip and seal."

"If we don't, we've wasted ... preventive maintenance is our right tool," Harris said. "I recommend we do a lot of chip and seal this year and less asphalt. It will give us a chance to protect some of these roads and we'll buy another four or five years on these roads."

Albright reminded Harris his budget is "tight" this year. The public works department's budget request was reduced by $309,460 for 2016.

Harris said the county could chip and seal about 30 miles of roads this year in addition to asphalt work.

Altogether, there are a little more than 1,000 miles of roads in Bourbon County, with about 150 miles of asphalt roads, 900 miles of gravel roads and the remainder dirt roads.

The county resurfaced about 12 miles in 2014. Because the county has used so much of its road sales tax funds that had been accumulating, only six miles of resurfacing was completed in 2015.

It is unclear how many miles the county will be able to complete in 2016.

"We have to make sure we have the capital to end the year," First District Commissioner Lynne Oharah said later. "Last year we just had to shut if off. This year we don't want to do that."

"Basically we just want to make sure we do the roads we have the funds for," Albright said. "And it doesn't take long to use a lot of money doing asphalt."

Bridges, low water crossings

Albright asked Harris to also provide a priority list for bridges and low water crossing projects.

Harris had presented the commissioners with a proposal from Schwab Eaton engineering firm for the required biannual bridge inspections.

There are 169 bridges and 30 low water crossings in the county, Harris said. The bid of $90 per bridge or low water crossing was not approved for a total of $17,510.

Harris said the county has always used Schwab Eaton and it has been a while since the county has asked for bids for the inspection service. He also said he has checked with other counties and believes the firm is offering "a good price."

Following Harris' recommendation, the commissioners agreed to request bids for the work, as it has been a few years since the county has bid the work out.

Commissioners and Harris discussed bridges or crossings that need attention. Albright recommended the county look at two bridges near Brian Snyder's residence on Wagon Road.

On Feb. 2, while discussing an issue of large rocks laid on the road, Snyder also told commissioners the two bridges have weight limits which prevent commercial drivers from delivering seed and other farm supplies to his residence.

Oharah said there also is a bridge on Unity Road "that is soft."

He also said farmers can't drive their equipment across one bridge on Old U.S. Highway 54 because it's narrow and has "high sides."

Harris said Frank Young of Agricultural Engineering of Uniontown is working on a bid to replace that bridge or at least "cut the sides."

The county has been using the Federal Funds Exchange program administered by the Kansas Department of Transportation to repair or replace low water crossings and bridges.

With the program, the county uses state funding in place of federal funds. Some projects eligible for the funding are road construction, rehabilitation, pavement preservation, purchase aggregate for roads, making safety improvements along roads and erosion control.

According to the KDOT website, using state funds in place of federal funds will give entities more flexibility on their projects. Roads that are non-federal routes will qualify.

The county must submit project costs in order to be reimbursed by the state.

"We have to be careful because we have been using it for low water crossings, which averages about $200,000 a year, and we've been getting replacement for blasting ($37,000) out of that, also," Harris said. "They only allow so much per year."

Harris said there are two low water crossings slated for the next Federal Funds Exchange projects.

Other business

* Commissioners voted to issue a $91,828 check to Home Center Construction of Pittsburg as a payment for the construction of the new transfer station at the landfill. Prior to this payment, the county has paid $143,000 of the $270,000 project, which is being funded by a general obligation bond.

Harris said the company still needs to put the metal on the building and plasterboard the office area. The county will finish the office.

Harris also said the windows and doors were removed from the original bid, but he believes they should be part of the construction project "so that they fit instead of us doing it after the fact."