Muscatine County supervisors voted unanimously on Jan. 5 to award a bridge replacement contract for project BRSDashC07073Dash60Dash70 to Jim Schroeder Construction and to authorize the county engineer to execute the contract electronically.

Brian Orowsky, identified in the agenda as the county engineer, told the board the project was let through the Iowa Department of Transportation and uses federal funds, which requires using the DOT's Doc Express portal for award and contract execution. "It is a very cumbersome process, and it's pretty challenging," Orowsky said, and asked the board to authorize the engineer to complete the online approvals to avoid repeatedly returning contracts to the board for signatures.

Orowsky said the county received three bids and that Jim Schroeder Construction submitted the low bid. A supervisor who moved the approval said the county has experience with Schroeder and recommended awarding the work. The board adopted Resolution 01-05-26-01 by roll call, recorded as aye by Jeff, Kurt, Scott, Nathan and one additional affirmative, yielding a 5-0 vote.

Orowsky said the contractor will submit the contract documents and insurance and bonding for review and that the project has a late start date of May 2026 with 105 working days specified for completion. No further contract conditions or dollar values were announced during the meeting.

The board's next step is administrative: the county engineer will finalize the electronic award in Doc Express and monitor submission of the signed contract documents so work scheduling can begin.