Supervisors debate who should oversee Magnolia Road bridge RAISE project; motion to assign consultant fails

Pottawattamie County supervisors discussed but did not approve assigning outside engineering oversight for the Magnolia Road bridge replacement funded in part by a regional RAISE grant.

County staff introduced the item by reminding the board that the RAISE grant agreement requires all bridges in the multi-county grouping to be built and open to traffic by Aug. 1, 2028. The staff presentation warned that if any participating county fails to complete its project on schedule, the entire group risks losing the combined $24,760,000 in grant funds.

At least one supervisor proposed assigning the project in its entirety to a consultant (Osmond Consulting was named in the discussion) for the duration of the program or until the county engineer could assume responsibility. Supporters argued that the county’s incoming engineer would be focusing on onboarding and winter preparations and that assigning oversight to an experienced consultant could protect the county’s share of regional funding and provide economies of scale with adjacent projects.

Other supervisors urged caution. Several board members said McClure (the engineering firm currently under contract for portions of the project) already had substantial work completed and that the new county engineer — not the board — should determine whether outside assistance is needed. One supervisor moved to assign the project to an outside consultant; the motion died for lack of a second.

Representatives from the City of Underwood attended and thanked the board for addressing the bridge replacement, saying they appreciated efforts to move the project forward.

No final assignment, contract award or additional funding was approved for the Magnolia Road bridge oversight at the meeting.