Andrew Lang, Brown County’s assistant highway engineer, stands on the County Road 13 Bridge and looks at a pile of tree debris. Brown County Commissioners have decided to move forward with removing the debris rather than wait for the problem to get worse.
NEW ULM – Brown County Commissioners voted to remove tree debris from the county’s State Aid Highway 13 bridge sooner rather than later Tuesday.
Highway engineer Wayne Stevens reported on flood-related tree debris that had accumulated on the County Road 13 bridge. He said June rains washed many trees into the Cottonwood River and many of them became trapped on the Country Road 13 bridge. The county requested bids from nine companies to remove the debris, but received only a single bid from Mathiowetz Construction for $195,375.
Stevens said part of the high cost is that Mathiowetz had to bring in 1,000 tons of riprap to build a road into the river so the crew could safely get an excavator to the debris and pull it to the bank. Mathiowetz Construction estimated it would take more than 55 loads to remove the debris.
“One reason we can’t do it from the bridge is the load-bearing capacity of the bridge,” Stevens said none of the contractors hired were willing to remove the debris from a boat.
Stevens met with officials from the Federal Highway Administration and the Minnesota Department of Transportation and it was confirmed that the project would be eligible for an emergency operations grant under the Federal Highway Administration. It is unclear how much of the costs will be covered by the program. Stevens said at least 80% would be covered by the program, but it could be as high as 100%.
To be eligible for the project, the county has 270 days to complete the project starting June 1. Stevens said they want to remove the debris in mid-August, but Mathiowetz Construction can’t start until October.
Commissioner David Borchert asked what pressure debris was exerting on the bridge.
Stevens said the worst of the pressure on the bridge is over because most of the debris is on the river bottom and water is flowing around it.
Commissioner Anton Berg asked whether there was still time to re-tender the project.
Stevens said he doesn’t think it’s a good idea for debris to build up in front of the bridge, despite the low water pressure. He also feared that if the debris isn’t removed by next spring, ice breaks could cause further blockages and put even more stress on the bridge.
Borchert believes it is likely that flooding could occur again in the spring.
Commissioner Scott Windschitl believes the bridge could be in danger again this year if it rains again.
Due to the urgency of the project, Commissioner Brian Braun made a motion to approve the debris removal bid, seconded by Borchert. The motion passed unanimously.
