Supervisors approve $1.6M replacement of bridge on F-62 over Elk Creek

The Jasper County Board of Supervisors awarded a $1.6 million contract last week to replace a bridge located along Highway F-62 West over Elk Creek, the construction of which could last up to six months and will require a paved route detour. Officials suspect drivers will instead use gravel roads to get around.

County Engineer Michael Frietsch said the bridge replacement was let through the Iowa Department of Transportation. He estimated the project would cost about $1.7 million. Four contractors submitted bids between $1.6 million and $1.8 million. The low bid of $1,648,842 came from United Contractors, Inc. and subsidiaries.

Supervisors approved the bid for the bridge — classified as Bridge S07— in a 3-0 vote. The other contractors and bids included: Herberger Construction Co., Inc. for $1,670,676; Iowa Civil Contracting, Inc. for $1,773,939; and Godbersen-Smith Construction Co. and subsidiaries for $1,849,551.

“Between HBP (Highway Bridge Program) funds and then SWAP funds that go matching with the HBP there’s about $2 million of funding, so we’re well situated to handle this project coming up here,” Frietsch said. “This will be a late start date of April 27 of next year … And it has 115 working days assigned to it.”

Frietsch anticipated the work could be completed around October 2026.

The detour, Frietsch added, is going to be fun. Secondary roads will detour traffic up T-22 to Interstate 80 toward Newton, then down Iowa Highway 14 to the “prison farm road” or South 60th Avenue West and then to the “Reasnor Road” or County Highway S-74 South. Supervisors doubted that detour would be followed.

“Ain’t nobody going to take that detour,” Supervisor Brandon Talsma said.

Frietsch realizes that but said the county has to establish a detour on pavement. Talsma asked if Frietsch plans on preparing the gravel roads that will likely be used instead as the unofficial detour. Frietsch said he will have to, but he added there are a number of ways people could go around.

“We’ll get contract rock down early and then we’ll be prepared to do spot rock out there (and) dust control,” Frietsch said.

Talsma added, “I was gonna say probably better plan on doing dust control in front of all the houses on that street, too.”

Frietsch admitted the detour is not great, but secondary roads tries its best to keep detours on pavement instead of gravel roads, and the aforementioned route was the best he and his staff could do. There really isn’t a good route, he said.