County highway committee looks to future for position
On Tuesday, the Taylor County Highway Committee met for their monthly meeting to go over and discuss a tenpoint agenda.
After an inspection of a bridge on Stetson Ave, east of County Road C, in Deer Creek, it was recommended that the arch pipes be replaced. The cost of the bridge would be split in half between county and town for a total of $33,064. This project was approved by the committee.
The committee is also preparing for a new truck mounted attenuator, a pull behind unit that would follow trucks in order to increase safety for drivers and workers on the road. This piece of equipment is being required by the state of Wisconsin for each county to own one. Highway Department Commissioner, Benjamin Stanfley, informed the committee that the state is going to be purchasing attenuators for 12 of the 20 counties in Taylor County’s region.
Stanfley said that the piece of equipment would have more than a ten-year life expectancy. The unit provides an equal amount of safety for both the public and the workers. “Basically, it’s a cushion, a collapsing cushion, to slow [someone] down, so [they’re] not just slamming into the back of the vehicle,” said Stanfley. “It’s holding it, and collapsing it, and absorbing the energy.”
The county will know by June 30 whether or not they will be receiving a state-bought attenuator for certain, otherwise the county will be forced to purchase one themselves with their equipment fund. The unit would cost between $27,440 to $31,620 based on the quotes found. The committee approved the purchase if need be.
In the middle of June, the Highway Department will be looking to hire a new operations manager. The job will be posted internally, as they are hoping to hire someone from within the department. Interviews would take place in the beginning of July so it’d give the person a few months to train and shadow the current Operations Manager, Gary Gretzinger. Gretzinger is retiring in December, which is when the new operations manager will start working full-time.
“Gary’s going to be a hard guy to replace, and it makes perfect sense to have someone train under him for a while,” said Committee Chair Scott Mildbrand. Gretzinger has been working at the department for over 20 years, with 12 of them being operations manager.
Committee members moved their discussion on to the topic of radio repeaters. Stanfley told the committee that it was suggested that they go digital in order for the county to all be on one communication system. Switching to a digital system would reduce maintenance and upkeep, but it would be more expensive. Stanfley said that he’s waiting on more information from Northway Communication. To their knowledge, there aren’t any other highway shops in the state that are on a fully digital system.
According to Stanfley, the sheriff’s department is also looking to replace some of their own radios. If the Highway Department decided to go on a digital route, they wish to work with the sheriff’s department in getting radios with them to get better pricing. Members of the committee brought up that the digital systems could have the potential to fix the current problem with dead zones throughout the county. Currently, the Highway Department is still gathering more information before making any final decisions.
Updates on the construction of a shop in Rib Lake were also given during the meeting. Stanfley is hoping that bids of the project will be out by June 1, but they are waiting on the DNR before they can move forward. As construction on the shop gets underway, the committee expressed interest to allow for local workers to have the possibility of working on the project. “I just want to figure out a way that we get the local people a chance to at least bid on it,” said Mildbrand.
Stanfley also gave updates to multiple projects throughout the county. Starting Monday, a four mile stretch will be paved from County Highway A to Highway T, near Highway 64.
THE STAR NEWS
