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Bourbon County public works outlines 2025 road plan; seeks May start for asphalt and chip-seal projects
Summary
Public works staff presented a multi-district plan that would prioritize milling, base repairs, asphalt overlays and chip-and-seal preventive maintenance; staff estimated needs, gave tonnage totals for recent years and asked the commission to consider beginning work in May.
Bourbon County public works staff presented a road-and-equipment plan on April 7 that prioritizes base repairs, asphalt overlays and chip-and-seal preventive maintenance across three commissioner districts, and asked the commission to consider a May start for asphalt work.
Public works staff reviewed a county road-rating exercise done after winter and drought, saying staff rated roads using the Pacer Asphalt Roads manual and highlighted sections needing immediate work. The presentation included a year-by-year summary of asphalt production: “Last year, we laid 9,336 tons,” the presenter said, and noted higher tonnages in previous years (14,302 tons in 2023, 11,474 in 2022 and 23,600 in 2021).
Staff proposed a sequence beginning with milling and base repairs on severely failed segments, then asphalt overlays on specified sections, and chip-and-seal (seal coat) work as preventative maintenance on routes paved in 2021. The proposal identified specific roads by district, including a half-mile section of Maple Road in Uniontown that a resident had requested be paved because it is a school-bus route.
Why it matters: staff said preventative maintenance will extend pavement life and recommended chip-and-seal where it provides the best “bang for the buck.” Staff also presented optional “extra” packages that would complete more roads if an additional ~$3.25 million were available; staff emphasized work is constrained by available sales-tax funds and contractor availability.
Schedule and coordination: staff said they would aim to begin smaller asphalt areas in May and reserve July–August for chip-and-seal work, with the larger Yale Road project taking much of the summer for subbase preparation. The county noted coordination needs with Vernon County for a state-line road segment and said the City of Fort Scott may request county-produced asphalt under an interlocal arrangement to be discussed further.
Public comment and next steps: Uniontown resident Mary Pemberton requested pavement for the Maple Road segment used daily by school buses; staff said they will provide a cost analysis and coordinate with the school. Commissioners asked staff to furnish a consolidated budget and GIS maps for the next meeting and said they would consider authorizing work at the first meeting in May depending on weather and sales-tax receipts.
