Woodbury County awards $751,517 bridge contract to Graves Construction; backs county engineer for NACE post

The Woodbury County Board of Supervisors awarded the low bid for bridge project BROS 5F97 — the bridge east of Pearson on L25 — to Graves Construction Company, Inc., for $751,517.95.

Laura Severs from Secondary Roads told the board the bridge carries regular traffic — “about 200, 300 vehicles across it a day” — and that two bids were received. “We had 2 bidders, Graves Construction and Dixon Construction. Graves Construction came in with a total bid of $751,517.95 Dixon Construction came in with a bid of $770,180.05,” Severs said on the record. The board moved to award the contract to Graves Construction; the motion passed unanimously.

Severs also asked for the board’s pledge of support for her to serve as a state director for the National Association of County Engineers (NACE). She said there would be no financial impact and that attending the association’s annual meeting would likely be at no cost to the county. The board approved the pledge of Woodbury County support by consensus, 5-0.

Why it matters: The contract award advances a scheduled bridge replacement on a regularly used county route; awarding the work to the low bidder avoids delay. The board’s pledge of support for the county engineer’s NACE post is an administrative endorsement rather than a financial commitment, Severs said.

Next steps: The board approved a resolution directing the county engineer to sign contracts once proper paperwork is submitted by the contractor; secondary roads staff will coordinate contract execution and construction scheduling.