Grant County approves Colonial funding for Arenas Valley road project; road director outlines maintenance challenges
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Summary
The board approved Resolution R25‑66 to accept Colonial funding to finish Arenas Valley Road improvements. Road director Mike Rocco gave a detailed update on chip sealing, erosion repairs, staffing and equipment constraints and said emergency washouts prevent a fixed maintenance schedule.
The Grant County Board of Commissioners on Nov. 13 approved Resolution R25‑66 to accept Colonial funding that will complete Arenas Valley Road improvements.
Planning staff described the project budget as $6.6 million total with a county match of $660,000 and a Colonial contribution of $5,940,000. The resolution passed unanimously after a brief presentation.
In a separate departmental presentation, Road Director Mike Rocco described recent work including chip sealing for the SCAP 25 project, shoulder prep, road base and two‑coat chip sealing that should extend pavement life 5–7 years. Rocco said crews are also working on multiple water crossings and repairing washouts from heavy July–September rains. He outlined staffing gains (new hires, promoted operators and CDL training) but said mobilizing equipment to remote washouts can take hours and that some roads require specialized work where crews may only progress a mile or less per day.
Commissioners asked for logs or a public‑facing status system so constituents can see when roads were last serviced; staff said an online reporting/push‑notification system (TextMyGov and other platforms) is in development. Rocco offered to drive commissioners to show problem areas and said Ridge Road milling and traffic control are in place with a detour for northbound traffic.
The board also approved other road and capital project actions on the agenda, and directed staff to continue coordination on easements and right‑of‑way necessary for Little Walnut and Arenas Valley work.