Butler County Engineer Greg reported on the departments proposed 2026 program, front-loading road and bridge repairs and a major new maintenance facility.

The engineer told commissioners the most immediate work will be road and bridge repairs that do not typically qualify for competitive grants and therefore rely on commissioners allocations. Projects named for next year include replacement or deck overlays on Bottom Road Bridge and Hamilton-Middletown Road, pier cap repairs on Crescentville Road bridge, and work on the Liberty-Fairfield Road bridge just south of Route 4. He said the Liberty-Fairfield bridge will require a road closure next summer and urged public notice because the closure will be a major disruption.

Greg said long-life repairs such as 2-inch deck removal followed by high-density concrete overlay are being used to extend bridge service lives by decades. Other county projects he listed include the Butler-Warren Road bridge (a joint project with Warren County), a Cox and Kingsgate roundabout south of a construction site at the Kroger, Gregory Creek bridge work, Shenley Road bridge improvements in Morgan Township, and widening on Trenton-Franklin Road funded with safety money.

The engineer said the office secured about $7.6 million in grant awards last year and continues to rely on safety and federal/state engineer programs, but warned scoring for competitive grants has grown stricter. He also described rising software and licensing costs (GIS, engineering design software) that are increasing operating budgets.

On fleet and facilities, Greg outlined a concept plan for a heated vehicle maintenance and storage facility north of the countys yard to protect snow-and-ice equipment and improve mechanics efficiency. He said the county is working with KZF to develop a concept and hopes to bid building design next year. Preliminary cost estimates ranged from $8 million to $10 million, and Greg said a previous $5 million county allocation would be instrumental in matching other funds to complete the project.

He also noted the countys pavement program (milling and resurfacing) follows a 17-year cycle designed for longevity, and said grant-securing success depends on experienced staff and ready-to-submit plans.

Greg answered commissioners questions about the countys bridge inventory, inspection cycles and coordination with water and utility agencies. He closed by asking commissioners to expect advance public notices for the Liberty-Fairfield bridge closure and to continue funding discretionary road projects that otherwise fail competitive grant scoring.

Looking ahead, the engineer asked commissioners to consider continuing targeted allocations for projects that sustain local road capacity and bridge longevity, and to support the planned maintenance facility as an efficiency and equipment-preservation investment.