Black Hawk County approves claims and awards bridge steel contract as prices rise

The Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors on July 7 authorized payment of routine claims across multiple county funds and awarded a contract for steel materials for the Ansborough Avenue Bridge, a bid the county engineer said exceeded the engineer’s estimate because of rising steel costs.

Supervisor Ritch Kurtenbach moved a resolution to approve expenditures and authorize the County Auditor to issue payments; Justin Brandt seconded the motion, which the board adopted. The claims list placed on file included vendor charges and common payroll-related disbursements recorded for the board’s review.

County Engineer Catherine Nicholas told the board that work on the Winslow Road bridge replacement will begin next week after recent road closures from weekend flooding. Nicholas said the low bid for Project L-3031 — the steel materials for Ansborough Avenue Bridge #74445 from Oden Enterprises of Wahoo, Nebraska — totaled $96,595.28, above the engineer’s estimate. She attributed the difference to rising steel prices and recommended award; the board adopted the resolution to award the contract.

The board moved and adopted the award on the recommendation of the County Engineer. Supervisors recorded as voting in the affirmative where shown were Justin Brandt, Tavis Hall, Ritch Kurtenbach, Chris Schwartz and Chair Linda Laylin.

The approvals are part of the board’s routine fiscal business and reflect line-item claims and vendor payments the county processes each cycle. The board did not change its schedule for upcoming bridge and seal-coating work described by the engineer.