County checking road to be ready for construction

Talk about it

The Stutsman County Commission voted unanimously to bore for soil samples along a portion of Stutsman County Road 40 east of Jamestown, after receiving information about the possibility of resurfacing the road.

“I think we need to bore it so that we know what’s under there,” said Commissioner Dale Marks.

Developers involved with the Spiritwood Industrial Park notified the county of planned construction at the site, including the $1.2 billion Spiritwood Nitrogen Project.

Development activities are projected to increase traffic on Highway 40 to 1,400 vehicles per day after construction is complete, and during construction 2,000 to 2,200 vehicles per day will be on that road. Current traffic is 1,000 vehicles per day.

Stutsman County initiated a resurfacing study on the road to assess its condition and the cost of resurfacing 10 miles of Highway 40, according to the study produced by Ulteig Engineering.

In its study, Ulteig recommended a 4-inch hot bituminous pavement overlay for parts of the road, a 2-inch mill and overlay for other portions and grade raises in three locations. Another area was marked as having a possible subgrade failure.

“This area of Hwy 40 was prone to flooding and poor drainage resulting in flood water adjacent to the road for an extended period of time,” Ulteig Engineering wrote. “… It is likely that with the ponding water the subgrade has been compromised.”

The boring will show the condition of the subgrade, which will determine part of the cost of the project. The county will also be able to use some of its own resources to keep costs down, said Casey Bradley, auditor/chief operating officer for Stutsman County.

In other news Tuesday, the commission:

* approved its final budget for 2013. The budget includes a 2.24-mill decrease from last year’s budget, but the dollar amount of the budget will actually increase by $496,262 due to the increase in property values, which means an increase in the value of a mill.

* as the Park Board, set dates for two upcoming commission meetings as well as a meeting of the Stutsman County Park Board. The commission will meet at 4 p.m. Oct. 30, with the park board to follow. The commission will meet only once in November, at 8 a.m. Nov. 20.

* as the Park Board, postponed approval of 2013 fees for cabin permits on the Jamestown Reservoir. The fees are set by the Bureau of Reclamation, and the Jamestown Cabin Owners Association requested more time to meet with the Bureau and discuss the fees before the county approves them. Fees are set to increase $240 for seasonal and $480 for year-round cabins. To give the cabin owners more time to speak with the Bureau, and still give landowners with expiring permits 60 days warning, the commission changed the date of an upcoming meeting.

* agreed to make all of Christmas Eve a paid holiday rather than half, because it falls on a Monday.

* received its annual audit, which was favorable.

* set a hearing date of Oct. 23 for foreclosure appraisals, with a land sale set for Nov. 20.

Sun reporter Kari Lucin can be reached at 701-952-8453 or by email at klucin@jamestownsun.com

Tags: local news, news, roads