Dearborn County reports $16.6 million road spending, approves local detour for SR 350 closure

Dearborn County commissioners on May 6 approved the county highway department's annual operations report showing $16.6 million in expenditures for roads, streets and bridges and agreed to use a local detour route during an anticipated 20-day closure of State Road 350 tied to work on U.S. 50.

The annual report "shows the county expended $16,600,000 towards road, keeping our roads and bridges in good condition," Listerman, the county engineer, told the board. The summary said about $5,400,000 came from dedicated accounts and roughly $11,200,000 from grants, general fund and casino revenues.

The details matter because the county's operational spending is made up of many targeted projects, Listerman said: "When you start breaking it down, it's a million here, a million there." He told commissioners the county maintains 503 miles of roadway: 465 miles of paved asphalt, about 13 miles with chip seal and 25 miles of gravel.

Commissioners approved the highway report so the county engineer can sign and submit the data to the Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) that compiles county-level spending for the state.

Listerman also briefed the board on an expected State Road 350 closure, to occur for about 20 days in June or early July (schedule dependent) as the state reconstructs the interchange with U.S. 50. The county recommended and the board approved an unofficial local detour that runs through parts of the city of Aurora, using Mount Sinai, Shortridge, portions of North Hogan, Cross Road and Park Road.

The engineer cautioned that the route is unofficial and that the county and the city of Aurora will monitor heavy-truck use and may place "no truck" signage where bridges or local streets have weight limits. Listerman said the state reimburses local governments for repairs needed because of detour-related traffic if such damage is documented and validated.

The meeting included discussion of state program changes affecting matching funds for local road projects. Listerman said the state reduced the local match from 25% to 20% for cities and towns under 10,000 population and for counties up to 55,000 population; the county's representative said this reduces match obligations but warned the county still must ensure the same overall funding reaches local paving programs.

Commissioners and staff noted ongoing trade-offs: slips and slope repairs often must be completed before paving, which reduces the funds available to resurface roads. The board unanimously approved the operational report and the unofficial detour route.

Less-critical notes: county staff said they will continue pursuing federal and state grants and that two of the larger slip repairs can cost near $1 million each, limiting how many resurfacing projects can be funded in a single year.