County approves five-year bridge-priority list; townships face $20,000 local commitment per bridge

The Freeborn County board approved the highway department's five‑year bridge priority replacement plan, which lists 28 bridges on the county priority roster. Public Works told the board that 12 of those bridges qualify for replacement funding with MnDOT; of those 12, five are county-owned structures and seven are township-owned.

Public Works staff said the county's capital improvement plan includes replacement of five county bridges and two township bridges in the 2027 construction year, subject to funding. The presentation noted town bridge and special town bridge funding require a local commitment of $20,000 from each township for each bridge. "Town bridge funding and the special town bridge funding requires a local commitment of $20,000 from each township for each bridge," the public works representative said. The board passed the resolution to approve the priority list to preserve eligibility for state bridge funds.