Mills County supervisors approve bridge removal, right‑of‑way change and budget adjustments

The Mills County Board of Supervisors voted to remove a road bridge over Interstate 29, realign a section of 240th Street to match the roadway on the ground, and adopt an Iowa DOT budget amendment that shifts local funds into construction accounts.

Jacob, who presented the road items to the board, said the bridge‑removal resolution (Resolution 26‑12) will be sent to the Iowa Department of Transportation once the board's signatures are complete and staff will work with the landowner on maintaining access during the removal process. "Once we get this sign, we'll send it to the DOT and then we'll start talking about as far as timeline we'll be able to remove that bridge," Jacob said.

The board approved Resolution 26‑13 to adjust the right‑of‑way on 240th Street so the legal boundary matches the road’s existing alignment. Staff cited Iowa DOT guidance IM‑2.270 to explain why a public hearing was not required for this type of right‑of‑way vacation when it does not change the traveled portion of the road; survey exhibits were prepared by Nick Carter.

Separately, supervisors approved an Iowa DOT budget amendment tied to the county’s five‑year plan that moves approximately $170,000 from maintenance line items into construction (reclassification of two failing corrugated metal pipes to reconstruction) and covers closeout costs for a street bridge project. County staff said the funds are local dollars being reallocated rather than new money and that one bridge project’s letting was shifted between fiscal years because environmental work was delayed.

The board also approved a set of routine personnel and contract items: a six‑month probationary raise moving county employee Stacy Sers from $62,000 to a budgeted $64,000, and a fiscal‑year 2026‑27 license and support agreement for the county’s accounting software, recorded in the transcript as $53,468.68. Both measures were moved, seconded and approved by voice vote.

In public comment prior to the road votes, a resident questioned a newly posted 35 mph limit on Baris Road and warned reduced limits could prompt unsafe passing; other participants and a supervisor stressed the reduction was enacted for child‑safety reasons near a child‑care center and bus stops. "35 is I don't think anybody's going to abide by it... I think people are getting kind of frustrated," one resident said. Board members urged consideration of safety at school and bus locations when setting limits.

Other items discussed during the meeting included a reported "bump" at the H12 bridge approach (staff described short‑term patching followed by eventual replacement of approaches), an intercounty maintenance agreement with Montgomery County pending signatures, a potential used skid loader purchase (staff reported a local option that could save roughly $40,000 versus a new machine), and an update that Rockberry quarry crews were beginning blasting with rock potentially available by July 4.

The meeting closed after routine committee updates. The board adjourned at approximately 8:55 a.m. and indicated the five‑year plan amendment and other documents will be forwarded to the DOT or returned for signature as required.