Chase County treasurer and public works staff brief commissioners on dormant account, hazardous-waste container and multi-bridge grant application

County staff and the treasurer's office updated the Chase County Commissioners on several finance and infrastructure matters at the Sept. 30 meeting, including a dormant bank account, a household hazardous-waste container grant application and a multi-bridge grant proposal covering several heavily deteriorated bridges.

Bernice Albers, who the board authorized to access Citizens State Bank accounts earlier in the meeting, told commissioners a checking account at Cottonwood Valley Bank has sat largely inactive and currently holds about $198,000. Albers said she will contact the banker to explore interest-bearing options or moving balances into CDs while keeping a working minimum in the checking account. Commissioners suggested seeking rate quotes and other options before changing the account structure.

Public-works and grant staff briefed commissioners on plans related to hazardous-waste collection and a regionally significant bridge grant. For hazardous waste, staff presented a quote of $16,991 for a climate-controlled replacement container plus roughly $8,000 to remove old pillars and pour a new concrete pad, bringing the replacement estimate to about $25,000. A grant would cover $15,000 of that cost, leaving an estimated county share of $10,000. Staff said they would submit the grant application conditional on county approval to cover the local share; commissioners indicated they would support moving forward and staff said they would proceed with the application.

On county bridges, staff described a previously larger application that had been reduced and focused on seven specific structures (six on Middle Creek Road and one on Bloody Creek) and estimated construction at about $28.7 million. The application proposed $2.469 million for preliminary engineering (PE) work; staff filed the PE request minutes after the portal opened. The PE grant is first-come, first-served with a $2.5 million ceiling. Staff said they expect engineering costs in the landscape of $760,000 to $2.4 million based on two firm estimates and estimated an engineering budget around $2 million for the scope. If the PE grant is not awarded, the county may need to provide roughly $2 million to complete PE. If the full bridge construction grant were awarded later, staff estimated the county match for construction could be approximately $1.4 million, and discussed financing options including bridge bonds or low-interest federal loan programs.

Staff also asked commissioners to sign an agreement with the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) to move a project (identified in the transcript as the Wai Wai Road bridge) forward; staff said the document requires signatures by the 10th of the month. There were no objections recorded in the meeting audio and staff reported they would proceed to obtain required signatures.

Grant staff recommended scheduling a separate work session to review bridge financing options and bond processes, and suggested pursuing bridge planning grants in future rounds to create a short- and long-range bridge plan that would strengthen future applications.

Commissioners did not vote to commit long-term funds during the meeting beyond allowing staff to submit applications and pursue matching or financing options; staff committed to report back with options if awards or match obligations arise.