County Commissioner Sue Hakes is feeling compassionate toward residents getting flat tires on the Devil’s Track Lake road (County Road 8) after completion of its reconstruction was delayed until next summer. During a county board meeting on October 18, 2011, she asked Highway Engineer David Betts what could be done to curb the washboarding, potholing, and sharp rocks.
Could they put Class 1 gravel down–finer than the Class 5 that is required under asphalt? Could they put a gravel crown in the middle of the road so water would run off rather than sitting in pothole-breeding puddles?
“Everybody wanted chloride when it was really dusty,” Betts replied, “and then it potholes.” He explained that crowning or overlaying Class 1 would be expensive and would waste materials that would have to be removed before paving. Betts guessed a gravel crown along the 2½-mile route would be $15,000-20,000.
Grading the road on October 13, 14, and 15 helped the situation. “Ninety-five percent of all the pot- holes disappeared after it was graded,” Commissioner Fritz Sobanja said. He had been up there checking over the weekend. Engineer Betts explained that because the gravel on top of the road after it was graded still contains calcium chloride (which tends to cause potholes), the potholes would probably return, although the road should be better because of the grading.
The Highway Department is talking to KGM, the contractor, about the possibility of people receiving remuneration for their flat tires. People could also make claims through their own vehicle insurance, Betts said.
“I feel sorry for those people,” Commissioner Hakes said. “It’s been horrible. They couldn’t even drive 10 miles per hour.”
“Every one of our chloride roads looks like that in the spring,” said Betts. He had concerns about the slippery slope they could be on if they started getting involved in flat tire claims.
Facilities study
“It’s been a fruitful discussion with Jeff and his team,” Engineer Betts said of his work with Jeff Oertel and Oertel Architects of St. Paul regarding a facilities study for Highway Department infrastructure.
Betts and Oertel met with the county board to discuss options that would improve air quality, provide needed office and storage space, create a wash station to prolong vehicle life, and reduce environmental effects from salt piles. Oertel Architects has conducted about 60 public facility studies and designed about three dozen.
Oertel said none of the Highway Department buildings in Grand Marais, Hovland, or Tofte have fire suppression systems, even though the main building in Grand Marais has fuel tanks within 20 feet of offices and welding is done inside the building. A building with a shop should have “positive pressure” in office and meeting rooms and “negative pressure” in shop areas so that fumes cannot migrate, but they do in the Highway Department building. In addition, Oertel said, “there’s just not enough room in the building.”
Regarding the cold storage building in Grand Marais where things look like they’ve been jerry-rigged, Oertel said, “I don’t think I’d try to save that.” He said, “The Goble building actually looked pretty good,” but “the Hovland building is in rotten shape. The roof might not be falling in – it might just not be fastened.” In Tofte, salt runoff has caused vegetative damage.
Highway Department facilities in Grand Marais passed a federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspection requested by the department two years ago.
Oertel showed commissioners four design ideas ranging from $5.148 million to $7.6 million. One hope is that a new facility would promote teamwork by creating a common break space for mechanics, field personnel, and office staff. Right now, some staff use a break room in the main building, and others take breaks in a corner of the Goble building that is open to vehicle fumes.
The least expensive design option uses existing structures as much as possible, including rehabbing and adding onto the main building. Two other options keep the Goble building but add a new main building near it. The most expensive option starts over with all new buildings, one of them a large building incorporating offices, maintenance space, and vehicle storage. “When you start from scratch,” Oertel said, “the relationships between spaces works out well.”
A vehicle wash station is included in all four designs. This is important for newer vehicles, Engineer Betts said, because they have a lot more technology that can be worn down by dirt and salt.
Improvements to the Hovland and Tofte sites recommended by Oertel would cost $540,000-570,000.
Oertel recommended that the county board prioritize its goals for Highway Department facilities. Betts agreed. “It’s expensive,” he said. “The board’s going to have to decide what it wants to do.” If they add on to the main building, for example, they would still have to deal with problems in it. Oertel said they could potentially re-use some materials from buildings they would remove.
The board took no action on the report.
Misplaced bid
The board awarded a contract to Concrete Design for snowplowing the courthouse, Law Enforcement Center, Recycling Center, Community Center, and Search & Rescue building. It will charge $50/hour for plow work and $55/hour for bobcat work.
The board amended a motion it had made on October 11 to award a snowplowing bid to Berglund Plowing for West Rosebush Lane at $100 per snowfall. Winchester Higgins had submitted a bid earlier than the rest of the bidders, and staff forgot they had it. He won the contract with a bid of $68 per snowfall.
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