Contractor given permission to use county roads for I-80 slope protection work

In order for a contracting company to follow through with slope protection work along Interstate 80, the Jasper County Board of Supervisors formally allowed crews to use county roads at West 62nd Street South from Highway F-48 West as a route to haul materials and gain access to the project site itself.

Supervisors on April 8 approved a memorandum of understanding between Jasper County and Nelson & Rock Contracting, Inc., of Onawa, to use the roads.

According to county documents, the contractor agrees to complete pre-construction and post-construction video documentation of West 62nd Street South from the highway and areas between the edge of road and right-of-way line not of the existing bridge crossing over the interstate.

Jasper County Engineer Michael Frietsch said, “They are wanting to use our road as access to that slope area on either side of the bridge and basically use it as access from F-48 West, more or less, as a haul road to get down there and work … Our road there is asphalt. It’s not rock. It’s asphalt. It’s paved.”

Nelson & Rock Contracting also agreed to restore the road, ditch, foreslope and backslope areas within county right-of-way to pre-construction conditions. The MOU remains in full effect until all restoration work is completed. Failure to do so before Oct. 31 or 30 working days after the slope protection work results in fines.

Frietsch said the video documentation offers a clear comparison in case of damages, in which case the contractor would be “on the hook to fix them.”

Supervisor Brandon Talsma was concerned how many loads would be transported on the roads. Are we talking 15 loads? Or are we talking 1,500 loads? Frietsch was doubtful the contractor would need so many loads. He likened it to some recent work near Rock Creek, so closer to 15 loads.

“I think they’re probably going to armor that slope and probably do the channels going down for drainage problems,” Frietsch said.

Talsma added, “I’m assuming you guys will review the footage yourself, too, or with them, correct?”

Frietsch confirmed the engineer’s office staff would not only review the footage but also require the contractor to have a secondary roads worker present during pre- and post-construction video processes. Jasper County employees will be there to witness these video recordings and review the area.