The Department of Public Works Committee received a detailed culvert assessment showing 1,885 county culverts, a proposed priority system for maintenance and major rehabilitation, and confirmation that the county will use a previously authorized $12.5 million bond as part of the funding strategy while pursuing state grants.
Kevin, public works staff/committee presiding in this portion of the meeting, summarized the assessment and said the planning office provided mapped condition ratings and photographs. The inventory includes a condition rating scale in which 7 represents a new condition and 1 indicates a culvert in very poor/deteriorated condition; about 6–7% of culverts were not fully rated because crews could not access both ends during inspection.
Staff recommended grouping culverts for bidding and repairs rather than pursuing single‑culvert projects, with county crews handling maintenance and minor rehabilitation and bid packages issued for major replacements. The committee heard that typical assessment considerations included roadway embankment erosion, scour protection, stream alignment, vegetation and debris, guide‑rail needs, depth of cover and culvert skew.
Public works staff said the county passed a $12.5 million bond last year to support this work and that the planning office is pursuing state water‑quality grants (including New York State Department of Environmental Conservation programs) with bond funds proposed as local match where required. Staff warned the county’s recent December 2023 washouts had cost roughly $5 million, illustrating the scale of needed resilience work.
On other agenda items the committee approved motions to establish crack‑sealing and guide‑rail projects using available savings, approved an insurance recovery budget amendment for vehicle damage, and approved an intermunicipal access agreement with Saratoga County to allow construction access for a bridge on County Route 1 in the town of Hadley; the access agreement was to be in a form approved by the county attorney. The intermunicipal agreement motion was moved by Merlino and seconded by Bean and was approved by voice vote.
Staff said the next steps are to complete ratings for culverts where access was incomplete, assign priority 1 work to obvious failures and those suitable for county crews, and bundle major rehabilitations into prioritized capital projects to be bid and scheduled over the next five to ten years.