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MDT briefs Treasure County on multi‑bridge RFP and MSAP planning grants; commissioners agree to apply
Summary
A Montana Department of Transportation representative told Treasure County commissioners that 24 bridges have been packaged into an RFP for design work and that planning grants (MSAP-style) will open at the end of October; commissioners agreed to pursue a planning grant to prepare engineering reports that position the county for construction funding.
A representative from the Montana Department of Transportation told Treasure County commissioners on Oct. 21 that MDT has bundled 24 bridges into a single request for proposals for design work, and that the agency expects to select firms within one to two months.
"They actually took those bridges, and they put them out for RFP," the MDT representative said during the board’s meeting, describing the multi-project approach intended to accelerate design work across multiple counties.
MDT also briefed the board on state planning grants that open around Oct. 31–Nov. 1. The preliminary engineering/planning grants cover work to produce project engineering reports that improve counties’ chances of winning construction grants. "What they're opening up is a preliminary or planning grant money... it's my understanding that they actually changed that around to where it's a 20/80 match, meaning you guys cover 20% of the cost, then the Department of Commerce covers 80%," the MDT representative said. Under that arrangement, a typical planning grant would cost the county roughly $6,000 of local funds for a $30,000 PER.
Commissioner response and next steps: commissioners said they wanted to pursue the planning grant to be positioned for construction funding if wider dollars become available. The board instructed staff to move forward with MDT on a planning application and to explore potential matching funds, including contributions from local partners such as town governments and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks when projects provide mutual benefit.
What remains unresolved: actual selection timelines for design firms, potential scope changes requested by state or federal partners, and the eventual construction funding schedule — MDT emphasized those elements remain under state control and could take several years.
The county asked MDT to submit the planning application on the county’s behalf and to follow up with specific contacts for engineering and subsequent funding steps.
