Chase County seeks federal pilot grant for Middle Creek bridge and road studies; preliminary work estimated at $376,000

Joel, the county road and bridge director, told the Chase County Commissioners on Feb. 28 that county staff will apply for a federal Rural and Tribal Pilot program grant to fund preliminary engineering and permitting work for two bridges and multiple culverts on Middle Creek Road.

"The portal opens to turn in the application on Tuesday at 02:00 our time," Joel said, adding that the program is first-come, first-served. He said the county's preliminary scope is for engineering, environmental review, permitting, geologic analysis and cost estimates for two bridges and four culvert structures, plus a cost-benefit analysis. Joel said the total for that preliminary package is $376,000 and that the grant minimum is $200,000 and the maximum is $750,000.

Why it matters: Joel said the preliminary work is intended to make the route eligible for larger federal programs once engineering and benefits are defined. "Our goals for this grant ... would be to increase the weight limits of the bridges, culvert, and the roads from an average of 25 to 40 tons, improve the sufficiency rating of the bridges from an average of 46.1 to 90, and decrease the number of functionally obsolete bridges from 2 to 0," he said. Joel said a bridge sufficiency score of 80 or less can make a bridge eligible for federal repair funding and 50 or less for replacement funds.

Joel divided the overall project into two phases. He said the estimated construction cost for the two bridges (Phase 1) is in the multi‑million dollar range (Joel gave an estimate in the meeting transcript that reads as roughly $4,945,000), and that rebuilding roughly 6.3 miles of roadway to a heavy-duty asphalt section would be substantially more — he cited a road estimate of $9,628,000 for the 6.3-mile segment under discussion. Joel said the preliminary engineering grant would cover only the planning, environmental review and cost estimates that would make the county competitive for later construction grants.

Joel said the county is working with CFS Engineering; he named Lonnie Martin of CFS Engineering as a contact and said staff have obtained quotes for the preliminary work. He also said the Kansas Infrastructure Hub will provide technical-assistance on finding additional funding after the preliminary studies are complete.

On timing and next steps: Joel said the preliminary work would likely take about a year, after which the county could pursue larger federal opportunities, including programs that previously were called BUILD or similar infrastructure grants and the National Culvert Removal, Replacement and Restoration Grant. The pilot program portal closes in April; Joel said staff would submit as early as possible because the program is first-come, first-served.

Road condition and maintenance plans: Joel described a separate, shorter-term plan to reclaim and rework the damaged chip-seal section of Middle Creek Road if the board does not direct another approach. "What my message to you guys is today is I'm planning to reclaim that road and put it back to gravel and do it soon unless you guys tell me no," he said. He explained the county typically rents a large reclaimer and rollers to grind and recompact pavement and estimated grinding cost at roughly $4,000–5,000 per mile, with the crew able to reclaim about a half-mile per day under normal conditions.

Truck routes and enforcement: Commissioners and staff discussed truck-route designations and enforcement. Joel said the designated truck route was created to protect other, more expensive bridges on alternative alignments, and he warned the county must enforce any restrictions consistently. He said quarry and heavy-haul operations have increased loads on the route and that replacing bridges will require external funding.

Cedar Point bridge construction and local impacts: Joel also reported that construction has begun on the Cedar Point bridge project (principal contractor: Cohron; subcontractor: Bruce Davis Construction). He said clearing and grubbing were complete and that temporary construction bridging was in place for equipment access. He warned that staging and heavy equipment movements are causing accelerated wear to chip-seal streets in Cedar Point and said the county will keep roads passable during construction and make repairs afterward.

Funding context and constraints: Joel emphasized the scale mismatch between available county funds and the cost to replace large bridges. "There is no way those two bridges get replaced without additional funding," he said, arguing that preliminary engineering and a clearly documented cost-benefit case are necessary to secure outside grants.

What the board requested: Commissioners asked for a follow-up package: (1) a condition map of the county's hard-surface roads broken into tenths of a mile, (2) a five‑year maintenance history for chip-seal roads, and (3) cost comparisons for reclaiming using county crews versus contractor pricing. Joel said he will gather historical work records and prepare a report for the board.

Ending note: Joel urged timely action on the pilot grant application because it is first-come, first-served and because the portal closes in April. He said the engineering phase would improve the county's position to pursue construction funds if the preliminary work shows the project meets federal funding thresholds.