BLOOMFIELD — The repair of a bridge east of Bell City was the topic of choice Monday at the Stoddard County Commission meeting.
Representatives from Smith and Company, of Poplar Bluff; Fricke Management and Contracting Inc., of Murphysboro, Illinois, and Missouri Department of Transportation were on hand for a preconstruction meeting concerning repair work on the bridge located on County Road 502.
The bridge, which requires the replacement of pilings on both sides of the bridge, will be repaired at a cost of $82,280 with work scheduled to begin July 1. The starting date might be pushed back depending on water levels. Fricke Management and Contracting Inc. expects the bridge project will last three weeks.
The bridge will be paid for through the Off-System Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation (BRO) program. The program provides funding to counties for replacement or rehabilitation of deficient bridges, according to the MoDOT website.
The commission announced the closing of County Road 502 effective Monday.
The decision to close the road was finalized after work began on another bridge on nearby Route DD. With that bridge out, traffic has increased on County Road 502, which is located east of Bell City.
Project manager Jeremy Manning, of Smith and Company, shared a list of ratings for the county’s bridges. MoDOT conducted the bridge inventory and inspection. He recommended a bridge on County Road 780 east of Bernie to be the next bridge project.
Commissioners will consider the recommendation and make a decision within two weeks.
Here are other items of business discussed or acted on during the meeting.
•Stoddard County Sheriff Carl Hefner announced that he hired Brent Stidham as a bailiff. He replaced Tim Zych.
•The commission set a date for the Board of Equalization meeting for 9 a.m. July 9 at the Stoddard County Government Building.
•Minutes were approved from last week’s meeting, which featured only one item. The commission voted to allow Smith and Company to provide the geotechnical report for the jail project for $6,500.