The Cole County Commission has approved an agreement for engineering work for a safety improvement project on Tanner Bridge Road. The agreement is with Central Missouri Professional Services for $64,795.
"We've been working to identify safety-sensitive areas on Tanner Bridge since the passage of the half-cent sales tax extension last year," County Engineer Eric Landwehr said. "Tanner Bridge has seen significant traffic growth in the past 10 years or so. There are several sharp vertical and horizontal curves, and there have been accidents in many areas along the road."
The project scope is from Route B to Grand Highland Subdivision. Five areas have been identified to make safety improvements, including:
- Just south of the Route B intersection.
- The Tara Road intersection.
- A low-lying area near Vida Lane that floods due to backwater from the Moreau River. A possible solution would be raising the grade of the road.
- The S curve near the Grand Island Subdivision.
- An area just past the Grand Island Subdivision.
"Things like fixing sharp curves, clearing trees and right of way for sight distance, as well as road widening, are all things we'll be looking at doing," Landwehr said. "The design will start with this engineering agreement, but we don't have a definite timeline for construction. We'd like to start on parts of the project later this year, if possible."
Commissioners have also signed an engineering agreement for a stormwater improvement project on Scherr Drive in the Westview Heights area. The agreement is with Central Missouri Professional Services for $10,200, with the work to be completed in 30 days.
"This is a small scope stormwater pipe and inlet replacement near the intersection of Amanda Drive," Landwehr said, noting a pipe rusted out and partially collapsed, causing washouts and potential flooding issues.
The design will be done as soon as possible and plans put out for bid within a month or so.
County Clerk Steve Korsmeyer also made a change to voting locations as part of his annual voting precinct report to the commission. Every year, the county clerk must inspect each precinct, review boundary lines and survey number of voters in each precinct.
The polling place for Osage Township St. Thomas Precinct has been moved fom St. Thomas School Hall to St. Thomas Knights of Columbus Hall at 15215 Route B after a request to move the precinct's voting location due to safety concerns for students at the school, Korsmeyer said.
He is also considering moving the Ward 5 Precinct 1 voting location from McClung Park to The LINC wellness center on Lafayette Street.