Lake Holcombe Town Board - Getting a new bridge isn’t as easy as you think
Pam Guthman, Holcombe resident and Chippewa County supervisor, spoke Jan. 9, at the Lake Holcombe Town Board meeting, about what is going on with the upcoming replacement of the County Hwy. M bridge. Guthman shared that while plans are in place and moving forward, it takes time to obtain funding and for other factors to be settled. Photo by Ginna Young
By Ginna Young
Obviously, possible closure of the County Hwy. M bridge in Holcombe, is concerning for residents, business owners, recreation seekers and emergency workers, as the reroute would add untold minutes and miles. However, even if the bridge is not closed because of weight restrictions, it will have to be closed for dismantling and replacement, when the time comes.
Recently, many in the community have weighed in on the matter, that they feel it shouldn’t take so long to get funding to replace the structure, as it is several years out. At the regular Lake Holcombe Town Board meeting, Jan. 9, Chippewa County supervisor Pam Guthman spoke about the matter.
Guthman shared that doing so must be done in incremental ways, because it is a large project, not just financially, but also with engineering, and environmental and economic impacts. There are lot of state and federal pieces to replacing a bridge.
A full bridge report and meeting minutes are listed on the Chippewa County website, to keep the public updated.
“They are working on it, there is a plan that they’re trying to move forward,” said Guthman.
Guthman also implored people to follow the posted weight limits on the bridge, to keep it open as long as possible.
“We do have to abide by those weight limits, because it will maintain that bridge until we get these things in place,” she said.
Also discussed, was some information that was shared from the Wisconsin Towns Association, about whether the town should consider a policy that a utility company must contact the town and request permission to bury electric lines in the town’s right-of-way. Lately, some utilities have been installed without the town’s knowledge or permission.
“I don’t know, maybe that’s something we should look at,” said town chairman Brian Guthman.
Town supervisors agreed that is something to think about, just to cover all their bases.
Town treasurer Jim Matacyznski also reported that he has not had an influx of dog licenses come in, which should not be the case, as he sent the reminder with the property tax bills. Dogs are required to be licensed in whatever township they live in.
