HC supervisors hear road work updates

MT. PLEASANT — The Henry County Board of Supervisors met with department heads Thursday for updates including road construction updates and the Henry County Treasurer’s office closing for a day Aug. 2.

Roads crews continue project and maintenance work in the county with pothole patching prior to the holiday weekend, spraying for noxious weeds, and mowing operations on gravel roads.

The 275th Street project caused a road closure for a week between Agency Road and Cass Avenue for culvert replacement.

The culvert was placed, reshaped and armored with riprap (rock/boulders used to protect the slope from erosion of soils).

Sight distance was improved from the east thanks to this project.

The roads crew will continue final grading on these ditches on this project, but the road will remain open to traffic.

The county roads department removed detour signs from the Wayland project this last week.

Currently, the road is open with no delays, however according to Henry County Engineer Jake Hotchkiss, there will be delays within a week or two as work continues.

When work continues, traffic will have continued access to this bit of road via flaggers and a pilot car.

Commuters can also expect delays on W55 north and W55 south as paving asphalt and shoulder rock placement continues.

The roads will not be closed, but will also be traffic controlled with flaggers and pilot cars.

Henry County Treasurer’s office will participate in Department of Transportation training Aug. 2 while the offices are closed.

According to Henry County Treasurer Ana Lair, her office closure includes property tax, motor vehicle, and driver's license departments as the staff in the treasurer’s office are universal clerks that serve all three departments.

“Other counties in our district may be closing also,” Lair said. “This [training] will be for both Driver's License and Motor Vehicle training presented by Iowa Department of Transportation personnel. We are thankful they are bringing in-person training to us at the local level. This district is made up of 17 Southeast Iowa Counties and many counties are bringing their entire staff to take advantage of this one day training.”

Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com