Liberty County approves US Fusion contract and emergency exemption to repair Winter Valley bridge

At a special July 2025 meeting, the Liberty County Commissioners Court approved a contract with US Fusion Specialty Construction to repair a damaged dam and bridge on County Road 6494 in the Winter Valley subdivision and separately approved an emergency exemption from competitive bidding to hire the same firm to inject concrete into the structure’s foundations.

The action matters because county engineers told the court that inspections by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) identified “critical findings” at the site, including undermined piles, a large scour hole upstream of a pier and erosion of the approach. County staff said TxDOT agreed to keep the bridge open for 30 days while the county put a plan in place to stabilize the structure.

Brian Greathouse, a county staff member who led the technical briefing, said a prior forensic test that cost “about $8,000 to $10,000” found roughly “about 10 foot of pile depth remaining,” which provided “some level of comfort.” He warned that an exposed pier loses strength when its pile is exposed to the atmosphere and that the county needed a near-term fix to keep the route open while seeking a long-term replacement.

The proposed immediate work is to stop the up‑stream flow that is scouring the piles and to install a fabric-form concrete armoring system described by the contractor as a permanent solution intended to carry the structure until TxDOT’s earliest likely funding for a full bridge replacement (the contractor noted TxDOT’s five‑year plan places replacement possibilities around 2030). The county packet listed the contract amount as approximately $73,610.

A US Fusion representative described the contractor’s approach and schedule, saying the in‑field installation would take “less than a week once we get started,” though lead time for manufacturing and delivery of the proprietary concrete system could be two to six weeks. The contractor also described previous installations at ports and lock projects as references for this technology.

Commissioners voted to approve the contract and, in a separate item, approved an order exempting the purchase of US Fusion’s services from competitive bidding on emergency grounds so the injection work can proceed promptly. Both motions passed with standard “aye” votes and were recorded by the court as carried.

The county staff noted the emergency scope was intended to stabilize the bridge until a permanent TxDOT replacement could be scheduled, and staff said they would continue investigations and coordinate with TxDOT and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) as needed.