A bridge in Greene County is slated to be done later this year.

The Greene County Board of Supervisors recently approved a $480,692 contract with Herberger Construction Company to replace a bridge over Snake Creek on 280th Street, near Rippey. County Engineer Wade Weiss explains the challenge that this project presents.

“There’s the high voltage line that goes right above that project and that’s what made it a little more expensive than a normal bridge project in Greene County. And also that bridge sits very near a paved route, (County Road) P-46, going north of Rippey. The turning radius (and) trying to get across that bridge with a semi, we ended up widening that structure to 30-foot from our normal 24-foot.”     

Weiss notes the bridge is near a wetland area and in consultation with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, he talks about the decision of why they are replacing the current structure with a concrete slab bridge instead of a culvert.

“They’re (the DNR) going away from us putting anything solid on the bottom. They would rather have it be a natural habitat underneath (and) you’re covering up wetlands then, so you have to have wetland offset. It just really makes the project a lot more difficult.

Weiss is using federal funds to pay for this project, which they will pay for upfront first with local funds and then are reimbursed by the federal government. He anticipates most of the work to be done this spring and summer.