Two unexpected bridge repairs last spring won’t be reducing any scheduled rural bridge replacements after all.
Contracts to start the design work on three of the four planned bridge replacements were signed Monday by the Bartholomew County commissioners.
DLZ Indiana Inc., an engineering and architectural firm, will be paid a maximum of $93,210 to handle all planning phases for the replacement of Bridge 301, located on County Road 300E over the Sydney Branch of the Flatrock River, north of St. Louis Crossing.
The current structure, which has extensive erosion on both ends of the bridge, is too short to be adequately rehabilitated, county highway engineer Danny Hollander said. In addition, the current position of the structure over a legal drain is also a concern, he said.
Although the goal is still to begin construction later this year, the highway engineer said there are still a number of factors that could delay the work until next year.
A similar contract was signed for two other bridges located about 800 feet apart from each other on County Road 400W, about a mile southwest of the Woodside Business Center.
A total of $145,400 will be paid to the Columbus-based engineering consulting firm Strand Associates for design services on Bridges 188 and 189.
Since these two structures, which were both built in the early 1970s, are so close, “it just makes sense to close the road one time,” commissioner Carl Lienhoop said.
While replacing both bridges at the same time should bring cost benefits, the amount of planning and construction work could delay completion for two to three years, Lienhoop said.
The fourth bridge slated for repairs this year is in northeast Bartholomew County. Instead of taking bids, the county highway department will use its own staff to make necessary repairs to Bridge 57 on Stafford Road, over Little Haw Creek, Hollander said.
At the beginning of this year, all four bridges were listed among significant projects the county intended to address in 2018.
But on April 7, flood damage to a bridge near Azalia caused county officials to close County Road 800S for several weeks for emergency repairs. Two weeks later, a wing wall collapsed near the edge of a Hawcreek Township bridge, wiping out about five feet of County Road 900E northeast of Hope.
After dealing with two emergencies in the same month, Hollander said as many as two of the four bridge projects might have to be tabled until at least next year.
However, the financial impact of one unexpected problem was eased in May when the commissioners voted to replace the bridge near Hope next year through a normal competitive bidding process, instead of continuing with emergency repairs.
More recently, additional funds were freed up after a non-bridge road project planned this year in western Bartholomew County was dropped, Hollander said.
Improvements were planned along County Road 675W, near Baker Hollow Road, that would reduce the amount of debris caused by flooding near the Hickory Hills and Beau Terre South subdivisions, the county highway engineer said.
But that project had to be indefinitely tabled after one property owner refused to provide necessary right-of-way, Hollander said.
Although plans are now moving ahead on the original four bridge projects, Hollander said unforeseen circumstances could still cause unexpected construction delays in the months ahead.
