Page County approves $2.47 million DOT agreement for trail project

Page County commissioners voted to approve an Iowa Department of Transportation project agreement that will supply federal funding for a local trail project totaling $2,466,452.

JD King, Page County engineer, told the board the agreement combines two funding streams: “TAP money is $400,000, and SRT money is $285,000,” and that those amounts are part of a larger package for the trail. King said the county is the project sponsor for the federal-aid work and that the agreement is a routine pass-through for the sponsor.

Commissioners asked whether the county must receive the funds directly or only act as a pass-through. A board member confirmed the county’s role is to pass the funds through; King said the DOT has already secured the larger share of funding and the agreement covers the remaining $685,000 needed to reach the total project budget.

An unidentified commissioner made the motion to approve the funding agreement; the motion was seconded and the board approved it by voice vote.

King also used the update to note other engineering work under way, including winter preparations, equipment servicing and staff training. He recognized Jim O’Hara for 41 years of service on the Page County Board of Adjustment.

The board did not record a roll-call tally in the minutes; the agreement passed on a voice vote. The DOT-led closeout on a separate Essex Bridge project remains in DOT’s hands, King said, citing a procedural wrinkle in that grant’s administration.