County road and bridge department notes busy year

The Jackson County road and bridge department crew members have had a busy year and they took a moment to celebrate their accomplishments at a department lunch last Thursday.

During the lunch, Scott Kieffaber, public works director, reported that the department received 515 phone calls regarding road and bridge concerns and that 454 of those concerns had been resolved.

It was also reported that, since July, 81 total miles of roads had been either fully rocked or repaired using funds from the county's special .4 percent sales tax.

Those 81 miles utilized 78,577 tons of rock in the first commission district, 20,174 tons in the second district and 50,078 tons in the third district.

District One includes Netawaka, Whiting, Soldier, Jefferson, Liberty, Straight Creek, Grant, Banner and Garfield townships and Holton Ward III.

District Two includes Franklin township, Holton Wards I and II and Lincoln township, which includes most of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation.

District Three includes Adrian, Washington, Douglas and Cedar township.

In 2022, the road and bridge department purchased several pieces of equipment, including two pickup trucks, three dump trucks with plows, a John Deere tractor, two skid steers, a rubber tire backhoe, a water truck, a Bomag roller with cab, two motor graders, a 72-inch ditching bucket, three chainsaws, a semi-truck and an oil heater for the tire building.

One of the department's motor graders was rebuilt in 2022. This year, plans are being made to have two of the department's semi-trucks, two of its dump trucks and one motor grader rebuilt.

Other purchases planned for this year include a new semi-truck, rotary mower and mulching head.

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