HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Reno County Commissioners will seek approval during Tuesday’s agenda session of a resolution to issue bonds for work on three bridges in the area and possibly a fourth.

The bond was requested by Public Works Director Dave McComb because the scope of the project and its cost far outweigh the amount of money generated by the county’s bridge fund.

Topping the list is the bridge over the Union Pacific railroad tracks on 43rd between the Old K-61 and Lucille. Officials say a traffic count on school days show 1,500 cars use that bridge daily.
The cost to rebuild the span is estimated at $1.7 million.

The other two projects include replacing the Nickerson Road bridge just south of Nickerson at a cost of nearly $2.6 million and renovating the Nickerson Boulevard bridge over the Cow Creek flood canal at a cost of $1.2 million.

McComb says a fourth bridge would also be done, if funds are available after the other three are complete. That would be a bridge off of Wilson Road into Willowbrook. If not, then it would be added to the top of the list for bridge work and paid for from the special bridge fund.

The bridge work would finance with bonds totaling $5,512,500 even though they would be granted a project authorization of $6,411,500.

McComb says they decided to go this route because several other bonded projects will be coming off the books in the near future, so the bonded debt of the county would be essentially unaffected.

The matter comes up for action during Tuesday’s County Commission meeting at 9 a.m. at the Reno County Courthouse.