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Dubois County advances Bridge 78 planning, approves highway hires and procurement moves
Summary
Commissioners approved hires for highway driver positions, accepted a low bid for county trash stickers and approved consultancy work to help apply for federal bridge safety funds as Highway Engineer Brent Wendholt outlined plans to pursue rehabilitation for Bridge 78.
Dubois County commissioners on Nov. 18 approved several highway personnel and procurement actions and heard plans for a rehabilitation of Bridge 78.
Interim Highway Superintendent Donnie Lueken told the board that Jim Leistner has been hired to staff the Haysville dumpster site and that, after interviewing four applicants, the county chose Kyle Neukam and Tim Vogel to fill two open truck-driver positions with a planned start date of Dec. 9, 2024. A motion to approve those hires, pending administrative processes, was duly seconded and carried unanimously.
Lueken also reported that county sanitation sites will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28, and that crack-sealing work is scheduled to begin in December. He said a District #2 excavator is out of service and that parts have been ordered with an expected 3–4 week lead time.
Highway Engineer Brent Wendholt briefed commissioners on the proposed rehabilitation of Bridge 78 (600 West and Division Road). Wendholt said he will attend the County Council meeting on Nov. 18 to discuss the project and, if the council reaches consensus to fund design, he will seek an appropriation for the design portion. He told the board he has identified about 60 county bridges that could be candidates for improvement if federal funding is awarded.
Wendholt presented a $500 proposal from Lochmueller Group to assist with preparing an application to the Federal Highway Safety Improvement Program for bridge railing improvements; a motion to approve the agreement was made, seconded and carried unanimously. The board also approved a separate Limited Use Agreement allowing Lochmueller Group restricted access to county GIS layers (bridges, culverts, emergency service areas, section corners) for a specific road-study project.
At 9:00 a.m. the board opened and read aloud competitive bids for materials to be used by the Highway Department during 2025. The bids were submitted to Highway Department staff for review and will be awarded at the Dec. 2, 2024 meeting after department verification. Lueken reported that Trash Stickers, Inc. submitted the low bid to supply 300,000 trash stickers at $7,950; the board moved to accept the low bid and carried the motion unanimously.
No formal vote was recorded on Bridge 78 funding at the meeting; Wendholt said he will pursue a Financial Commitment Letter and seek Council action to appropriate design funds if the council concurs.
