Worth County approves resolution to back federal bridge grant application

The Worth County Board of Supervisors voted to approve Resolution 2025-24, endorsing a Competitive Highway Bridge Program (CHPP) grant application for a county bridge identified by federal ID 356251.

The resolution authorizes the county to participate in an agreement with the Iowa Department of Transportation, which will serve as the lead applicant and hire HDR to prepare and submit the grant application. County staff said the county will pay its share of project fees and that the bridge will be bundled with a DOT bridge project for letting in federal fiscal year 2028; a target letting month mentioned was July 2028.

County staff told supervisors the bridge is a “standard size bridge” and that including it in the DOT bundle should simplify design and letting. The discussion noted the CHPP grant process and that the county must sign the resolution and the accompanying agreement to show local buy-in as the grant application is submitted.

Supervisors carried the motion to approve the resolution. A roll-call was taken; Supervisor Stone and Supervisor Lowberg were recorded as voting “aye.” The motion passed and supervisors signed the documents the same day.

Why it matters: If the CHPP application wins funding, the DOT-led project would replace the existing structure and add a span to the county bridge inventory; staff said the structure would likely be a standard design that would not add substantial recurring inspection burdens.

Next steps: County staff will complete signatures on the resolution and agreement and coordinate with the DOT and HDR as the application proceeds.