Jan. 12—The Jasper County Board of Supervisors on Jan. 7 approved a supplemental agreement for the second phase of the Highway F-48 West resurfacing project. County Engineer Michael Frietsch said additional construction administration services were included in the agreement at the cost of $12,600.
For a project that was recently awarded to InRoads, LLC, for more than $2.5 million, the extra funds are a drop in the bucket and are still within the engineer’s initial estimate of more than $3.3 million. The supplemental agreement was made with civil engineering firm Snyder & Associates.
“We will submit that (the supplemental agreement) to the DOT to use farm-to-market moneys to cover that,” Frietsch said. “That will allow them to participate in the pre-construction meeting and be available to us if we have questions regarding their design or their construction.”
The board of supervisors approved the supplemental agreement in a 3-0 vote.
Four bids were submitted to Jasper County for the second phase of the Highway F-48 West resurfacing project on Nov. 26, 2024. Interestingly enough, all bids were below estimate. The board of supervisors voted 3-0 to accept the low bid of $2,545,753.23 from InRoads.
The first phase of the F-48 West resurfacing project from the Newton city limits to the South Skunk River bridge near the approaches of I-80 also came in below budget when the contract was awarded to Manatt’s back in 2023. The bid came in about $1 million less than what the engineer estimated it would cost.
The second phase of the F-48 West project extends from the South Skunk River bridge (Bridge M03) to Iowa Highway 117 near Colfax. The highway will be resurfaced with hot mix asphalt and is expected to significantly improve its lifespan and the condition of the road.
OMG Midwest Inc. doing business as Des Moines Asphalt & Paving submitted a bid of $2,804,529.44; Manatt’s Inc. submitted a bid of $2,863,452.70; and Grimes Asphalt and Paving Corporation submitted a bid of $2,897,970.57. Frietsch noted the bids the county has received have been competitive and reasonable.
Frietsch allocated $2.5 million for the project, along with about $500,000 from a Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) grant, about $500,000 in federal aid and about $1.5 million in farm-to-market funds. Frietsch noted the late start date for the project is May 5, 2025, with completion within 120 working days.
“So just so we’re clear, this project includes the realignment of the intersection of South 28th Avenue West with F-48 West, which is going to be a fair amount of work,” Frietsch said. “It also includes reconstructing the approach paving to the railroad bridge on both sides and all that concrete that goes on both sides.”