Marquette County highway department reports April costs, project schedules and staffing needs

Marquette County Highway Department staff reported financial and operational updates to the Highway Committee on May 19, including April maintenance costs, fuel sales, project schedules, equipment updates and staffing needs.

Brian Trebiatowski told the committee that April Routine Maintenance Agreement costs totaled $207,187, largely for asphalt repairs on I-39, and that 64.17% of the state maintenance budget has been spent. County costs for April were $116,904, of which $68,164 covered county maintenance activities such as patching, shouldering and brushing; winter maintenance costs were $26,590 and road construction costs $22,150. The department reported a remaining 2026 budget balance of $2,432,522.

On labor and town work, Brian reported townships had $35,326 in work for April (labor $16,573) while villages and the city had $15,520 in work (labor $5,823). Year-to-date labor is 20.28% higher than the five-year average and 6.95% higher than last year; seasonal construction work is up 38.25% and winter maintenance up 11.20% compared with the five-year average. He said 2026 year-to-date labor percentages are: county 52.30%, state 27.55%, townships 19.42% and interdepartmental 0.73%, and noted that only 23.96% of the department’s labor costs are covered by the levied county budget, with the remainder in the Highway Operational Fund.

Fuel sales and equipment: the department sold 5,172 gallons of fuel to other departments in April and 19,017 gallons year to date. April average prices were $3.7933 per gallon for unleaded and $3.3438 per gallon for diesel, both figures including the state tax of $0.309 per gallon. Brian described recent equipment activity: a small surplus auction was held (an old tri-axle did not meet reserve and was relisted) and the department received one of two new quad-axle trucks ordered in 2024; the first truck had a 21-month completion timeline and the second remains on a similar schedule.

Project updates: Brian said the I-39 project is underway with projected completion in September 2026. County Road E paving is expected in early fall after the contractor completes I-39 work; Cold-In-Place recycling for County Road P is scheduled for mid-to-late June with paving after the Fourth of July. He reported that the County Road D Causeway Project received the Wisconsin Chapter APWA Project of the Year award (transportation projects under $5 million) for its flood resiliency improvements, added fishing platforms and use of local forces, and that the project was selected for the National APWA Project of the Year Award in the same category.

Local-bridge design: Brian summarized a meeting among DOT, the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads and the design firm addressing delays caused by Union Pacific Railroad; DOT and OCR are seeking to limit the span the railroad requested and are targeting a 75-foot bridge span, rather than a span that would cover the railroad’s entire right-of-way.

Staffing: Brian said the department currently has two full-time vacancies and plans to hire up to four limited-term employees to help with summer traffic control and projects; he said he will discuss filling at least one vacancy with Ron Barger in coming days.

Other business and scheduling: Brian said supervisory staff participated in a regional mass-casualty exercise and that he will attend upcoming regional transportation meetings and the Summer Highway Conference in early June. The committee agreed to continue meeting on the third Tuesday of each month but move the start time to 10:00 a.m. The meeting adjourned at 10:09 a.m.

Votes at a glance from this meeting: Mike Raddatz was elected Highway Committee chairman (unanimous), the meeting agenda and the March 17, 2026 minutes were approved (unanimous), and the ATV route speed-limit increase motion passed 3–1 with one member absent for the vote.