Bastrop prioritizes street maintenance and old iron bridge planning in FY2025 draft

City staff presented street program priorities for FY2025 that emphasize maintenance and rehabilitation while deferring major new capital until existing projects are complete.

Staff identified specific contract and project estimates: an HA5 treatment contract (~$1.4M) to treat roughly 23 lane miles, Pecan Park seal coating and a mill/overlay package (~$73,000) for about 4 lane miles, and a street rehabilitation grouping (Mesquite, Gutierrez, Childers and Water Street segments) estimated around $1.4M. The city also described collaborative projects with Bastrop County (Piney Ridge, Post Oak, Rim, Tahitian) budgeted at about $249,000.

On the old iron bridge project, Sylvia said the city has roughly $18 million in bonding capacity and has incorporated the bridge as a $15 million item; staff noted an opinion of probable cost with a wide contingency currently estimated around $20 million and a design contingency of about 25%. Engineer Hewitt‑Zollars is managing design work and the Army Corps permit application is in process; staff expects a 90% design submittal in October and hopes to go to bid in early 2025.

Council discussed options for using additional one‑time funds for streets (an example $800,000) and Sylvia recommended waiting to review first‑quarter sales tax receipts (she estimated an additional $500,000 could materialize) before moving large amounts into the street program, suggesting a mid‑year reallocation might allow a partial ($300,000) transfer instead of committing the full amount up front.

The council asked staff to return with clarified project lists, corrected budget book pages and timing estimates once design and permit milestones are reached.