Illinois Valley Times

Bureau County Transportation Committee met July 28

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

Transportation Committee

Members Present: Keith Cain, August Block, Tom Dobrich, Jason Floyd, and Marshann Entwhistle.

Others Present: John Gross and Maureen Meier.

Called to Order: 6:30 p.m.

Minutes Read: Additions or Corrections: None

Motion to Approve Minutes: Tom Dobrich, seconded by Jason Floyd

Favor: All Opposed: None

Motion Carried

Claims: CHF claims totaling $69K consisted of parts, payroll, employee health insurance, utilities, tractor tires and legal fees related to ROW acquisition on 1745 North Avenue. County MFT expenditures of $1.3M included payroll and a good portion of the resurfacing of CH12 and CH27. CAB claims of $227K included payroll and final construction expenses for the structure replacements in both the Village of Tiskilwa and on the Putnam-Bradford Blacktop. TBP expenses of $12K consisted of preliminary engineering for multiple township bridge replacements.

Motion to approve claims by: August Block, seconded by Jason Floyd.

Favor: All Opposed: None

Motion Carried

Discussion items, with no action taken:

1. Construction Status Update: John informed the committee that paving and shoulder work on CH 7, 12 and 27 are all but done. John informed the committee that highway crews will now be dressing up driveways/entrance and polishing up the area. They are current back-filling at the structure replacement site on the county line in Macon Twp. We still have 2 structure replacements and resurfacing Buda Blacktop to do, but we're making progress. Township seal coat projects for this year are all done. John added as a side note that the paving had turned out exceptionally well and he was very pleased with the end result.

2. Electronics recycling for 2026 have been scheduled for April 25th and October 24th.

3. John informed the committee that Bureau County is the recipient of yet another structure replacement that will be covered by the structure bundling recently made available. This structure is located in Berlin Township and brings the new total of projects John has managed to get covered by the structure bundling program up to $2.5M across 4 projects that will be 100% funded for both engineering and construction expenses. A truly tremendous savings for the County. John shared with the committee that there is new leadership involved with program funding being made available and that these new funding programs have been deeply beneficial for us.

4. Village of DePue: Being aware that the committee members were familiar with the current post-flood situation in DePue, John asked Tom Dobrich how things were going recently. Mr. Dobrich said the bridge is closed and will remain closed until a firm plan of action is determined. Extensive discussion took place regarding past flooding situations and potential structural concerns, whether perceived or realized.

5. Old Business: Keith Cain stated we need to move forward with land purchase for future ROW acquisition for project site at 1745 North Avenue. John said he had a meeting with IDOT, the ICC, the railroad and other entities. Another meeting is scheduled for August 26th, and John will be moving on that purchase as soon as he possibly can. August Block inquired if a date had been set for a ribbon cutting, to which Mr. Cain answered one has not yet been set.

6. Noxious weeds: no complaints have been received yet this year.

Motion to Adjourn was made by: Tom Dobrich, seconded by August Block.

Favor: All

Time Adjourned: 7:15 p.m.

https://bureaucountyil.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=12&ID=1532&Inline=True