Diamond Trail Road construction plans approved

The Jasper County Engineer’s Office has started to put together construction plans for the repaving project that includes more than four miles of Highway F-62, also known as Diamond Trail Road, east of Highway 163 and west of Highway 14. The Jasper County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the construction plans, allowing communication to start with the Iowa Department of Transportation.

Editor’s note: A previous version of the story stated the affected section of Highway F-62 was between Reasnor and Highway 14. The correct location of the proposed construction area has since been updated in the article.

If the office’s plans are approved by the IDOT it will repave the four-mile section with a PCC overlay of concrete. According to documents provided by the engineer’s office, a new PCC overlay, also known as “whitetopping,” consists of a thin PCC layer over an existing concrete pavement.

“I honestly don’t know if the IDOT will agree with our proposed plan, but we’re just going to throw it out there and see what happens,” county engineer Mike Frietsch said.

If the IDOT approves the plans for repaving, work will take place sometime in 2022.

“This road is one of the worst roads in the county and it’s time we fix it,” Frietsch said.

Frietsch then went on to present the different bids from companies to purchase his department’s yearly supply of miscellaneous signs in preparation for winter.

The engineering department received three different bids for the project, with the lowest bid of $13,572, coming from Newman Signs of Jamestown, N.D.

“I know that sign loss goes way up during the winter, so it’s good that you’re getting a jump on this,” supervisor Brandon Talsma said.

According to the bid documents provided, the engineer’s department will receive more than 300 signs ranging from hazard markers to no passing zones.

“The federal grant that usually pays for this hasn’t been rolled out yet, but usually we get reimbursed after we’ve already made the purchase,” Frietsch said.

The supervisors voted unanimously to approve the Newman Signs bid and the purchase of the signs.

Maintenance director Adam Sparks next presented plans for his department to replace the Jasper County Armory fire escape door.

“I honestly can’t tell you how old this door is. It’s old, rusted and seizes up whenever someone tries to open it. At this point, it’s a safety hazard for everyone in the building,” Sparks said.

Maintenance received two bids to replace the door, with the winning bid of $4,025 coming from Hamilton Glass in Newton. Hamilton Glass’ bid includes both removing and replacing the old fire door.

The board voted unanimously to accept Hamilton Glass’ bid. Work will begin to replace the door in the next few weeks.

Finally, county assessor Stacey Von Dielingen presented a hiring resolution for a new full-time assessor clerk.

The new clerk, Sara Fifer, will be taking over for a former clerk who left to accept another position. Fifer will be hired at a rate of $17.50/hr.

“The money for this position is already in my budget, so the question of money is not a problem,” Von Dielingen said.

The supervisors approved the hiring resolution unanimously.

In other business, the supervisors:

• Approved the annual urban renewal report, fiscal year 2020-21.

• Reappointed Larry Ladd to the Jasper County Zoning Commission Board.

• Set public hearing dates for the recodification of county ordinances. The set dates are at 9:30 a.m. Dec. 7, 14 and 21.

Contact Abby Knipfel at 641-792-4687 ext. 6531 or aknipfel@shawmedia.com