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Committee urges inclusion of road-condition priorities, larger culverts in comprehensive plan
Summary
Members told county planning staff to add highway priorities to the county comprehensive plan, including earlier resurfacing to avoid severe deterioration and consideration of larger culvert sizes to account for heavier storm events.
The Highway Committee recommended the county comprehensive plan explicitly address road‑condition priorities and culvert sizing to reduce the risk of severe deterioration and repeated emergency repairs. Committee members said some state and county roads have deteriorated to unacceptable levels and asked planning staff to record those concerns for future plan updates. One member said Highway 13 from Glidden to the Price County line “is horrible” and asked that the comp plan discourage deferring repairs until roads reach that condition. Members also urged that culvert replacement standards reflect changing weather patterns. Matt said the committee should consider “bigger storm events” when sizing culverts and acknowledged the county cannot design for extreme hundred‑year events for every crossing but should incorporate climate resilience where practical. The committee discussed mowing and brushing policies as part of corridor management. Staff noted county crews typically do one to two passes when mowing; a citizen raised concerns that early cuts removed milkweed habitat. Members said mowing and brushing timing is a balance between safety, sightlines and environmental concerns. The committee asked staff to obtain the current comprehensive plan text and return specific highway‑related suggested language at a future meeting.
