Sunday, May 19, 2024
Thanks to anticipated grant funding expected to potentially eclipse $100 million for local road and bridge repairs, county leaders are looking ahead to major improvements in addressing concerns such as low-water crossings to enhance public safety.
The funding is administered by the Texas General Land Office (GLO), and the stipulation is that the work must be completed in an 18-month time frame that would conclude in the spring of 2025.
National Resources Solutions President Steve Manning said he has also talked to representatives of Copperas Cove and Gatesville who are also interested in partnering with the county on improvements.
"Cove has 13 projects totaling $6.8 million, and Gatesville has four or five projects that I'm going to say are in the ballpark of $3 million to $4 million," Manning said. "We're looking at $121 million total (countywide). The money will come to us over about a two-year period, so we've got time to do those projects."
One of the main priorities for the county is a project across the Leon River on Straws Mill Road, and the city has identified another area of concern on the northern end of that road.
"The GLO mentioned that particular project would be good and a lot of (Texas Department of Transportation) money should be available for that," said Coryell County Commissioner Scott Weddle. "It's a big project."
County Judge Roger Miller said that the area at Straws Mill has been an ongoing concern.
"When we call that a major project, I think that's an understatement," Miller said. "Dealing with snags and the Leon River watershed, there's going to have to be a pretty significant environmental study. It has created a logjam in that area for decades. The environmental impact will create a whole new level of involvement we won't see on smaller projects."
Hannah Jordan, a project manager for NRS, said planning will hopefully help to minimize disruptions to the community once work begins.
"We're looking at how to prioritize projects being completed and how it will affect residents, traffic and traffic flow," Jordan said. "We also want to consider how services might be interrupted (by construction) to make it as clean and smooth as possible."
Handling the logistics will be important because the scope of work is far beyond what the county generally handles in a condensed time frame, Manning said.
"Right now, we're looking at up to 21 projects and we'll work with (Coryell County) Road and Bridge on which are first, and which are last. We may be looking at doing eight to 10 years of work in 18 months. It's going to impact people."
Weddle said if the focus is all on low to moderate income areas first, it could cluster the work and aggravate traffic problems in those areas. He said spreading out the work is a better common sense approach.
One area that NRS considered is in Mother Neff State Park - Old River Road.
"It is definitely a little more difficult but definitely a priority because it is a safety concern," Jordan said. "The structure (bridge) is barely meeting requirements and it's a big safety issue."
Manning said the bridge, built in the 1930s, is failing. He noted that Coryell County Road 314 goes to Mother Neff State Park.
County leaders, however, say the state has responsibility for the bridge.
"The state owns the right of way to it and they want it maintained as a historic treasure, so they should fund it," said County Attorney Brandon Belt.
Judge Miller said the bridge itself is not part of a county road, and that it is a nationally protected historic road.
"It's a big issue and involves the desire of some local residents versus our legal obligations," Miller said. "It's a convoluted mess. TxDOT (the Texas Department of Transportation) and Historic Society don't want to work together, and Texas Parks doesn't want to work with anybody ..."
"We're stuck in the middle," said County Road and Bridge Director Justin Latham.
"There are a lot of issues with a very small structure," Manning said.
Latham said because of the historic nature of the bridge, it would better fall within the purview of the state.
"My personal feeling is if we try to address that, we'd spend a disproportionate amount of time trying to get that shovel ready," Miller said. "There is supposed to be an influx of money for TxDOT to address bridges."
Commissioners Kyle Matthews and Keith Taylor both agreed with Miller that the bridge at Mother Neff should be left off the list of county projects, and that the matter should be referred to the state.
