Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
At their meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 5, Eddy County commissioners looked at cost estimates for a proposed multi-million dollar project to improve County Road 10, known locally as the Brantford road.
There were three different estimates presented, with each one projecting the cost per mile for different versions of the project.
The cheapest option would involve reducing the currently-paved road to gravel, and would include a full-depth reclamation, 6” aggregate and a dust control chemical – that option is estimated to cost the county $465,523.69 per mile.
The Brantford road is 7 miles long, bringing the total for the first option to $3.25 million.
Meanwhile, at $1.2 million per mile, the most expensive option is estimated to cost the county just north of $8.5 million in total.
That option would include a full-depth reclamation, reshaping of the base course, HMA (Hot Mix Asphalt) pavement and a chip seal coat.
The third option is estimated to cost the county $647,629.30 per mile for a total cost of $4.53 million. This option also includes a full-depth reclamation and reshaping of the base course, but does not include HMA pavement and has a double chip seal coat.
Commissioners weren’t happy to see the high projected costs, but agreed that something had to be done for the Brantford road.
“I mean we don’t have any choice,” said chairperson Dave Gehrtz. “It’s gotta be done.”
The commission did mention that the county has $900,000 available through the state’s Prairie Dog Infrastructure Fund, which is money that must be used on a road project.
Commissioners didn’t make a final decision at Tuesday’s meeting, and agreed to table the discussion for now.
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, commissioners gave a brief update regarding the city’s proposal to share the cost of making improvements to the airport north of New Rockford.
Commissioners said they hadn’t received a ton of feedback since their last meeting when it was proposed, and didn’t make any final decisions at Tuesday’s meeting.
Instead, they agreed to reach out to New Rockford City Commission President Stu Richter to begin acquiring more details and to work out a more concrete potential plan.
“We’ll work out some kind of a deal that’s equitable for both the city and the county,” said Gehrtz.
Meanwhile, the commission also provided an update regarding the 10-acre parcel of land in Gates Township, which they first considered selling last month. The land is owned by the county and is located where an old road used to be.
Gehrtz said he and Eddy County Road Superintendent Todd Weber drove out there, and determined that the county should try selling the land for under $1,000.
The commissioners agreed, and unanimously carried a motion to advertise the property for less than $1,000 while retaining mineral rights.
Afterwards, Commissioner Glenda Collier told the commission that work is still underway to acquire a joint County Weed Officer for Eddy and Wells County.
The next regular county commission meeting is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. at the Eddy County Courthouse on Tuesday, Oct. 3.
