IOWA CITY

When it came time to plan a new surface for a road in the middle of Amish country in Stringtown, located just north of Kalona, a Johnson County official traded his car ride for a buggy ride.

“I actually went for a buggy ride about a week ago with them, “said Ed Bartels, Johnson County Assistant Engineer with Secondary Roads. “Just to get a feel for it.”

A portion of 540th Street SW, which passes in front of Stringtown Grocery, is scheduled for a spring 2024 resurfacing project. The road has a chip-seal surface, but it will change to an asphalt surface for the first time. Bartels is designing a new surface that will be hard enough for cars and trucks, yet soft enough for the horses who use the road from local farms every day.

“I grew up on a farm,” Bartels told the Johnson County Board of Supervisors during its Sept. 20 work session. “It wasn’t anything really unusual for me. I’d never ridden in a buggy like that. … So that was kind of educational.”

The Board will vote Thursday, Sept. 28, on a bid of nearly $1 million by LL Pelling of North Liberty, a road construction company that is well known for its work with asphalt. Pelling was the only bidder on the contract and its bid was $982,877 for a project estimated at $960,000 by county staff. County staff is recommending approval.

Bartels said he has spoken to engineers in Amish communities around different places in the country to talk about road surfaces.

“It’s kind of hard on the horses, according to the folks who have to ride around in buggies all day,” Bartels told the Board. “Asphalt is a little bit more yielding. I designed this specifically with that in mind.”

The project will include resurfacing the road from Highway 1, where Stringtown Grocery is located, and east to Gable Avenue. Work is being planned for April 2024 although preparations could begin as early as this fall.

Bartels told The News that the new road would be 33 feet wide with a new, drainable base underneath the surface.

The stretch to be resurfaced, which is less than half a mile long, is the precursor to a larger project on 540th Street slated for 2024 or 2025 on the county’s five-year plan. A $4.1 million pavement rehabilitation project, from Highway 1 west to Calkins Avenue SW, where Hillcrest Academy is located, is in the planning stages.

Board Action

The Board approved an eligibility change for an infant and toddler scholarship day-care program and reimbursement process that is funded by American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money. The change clears the way for household-income eligibility to be increased to up to 250% of the federal poverty level.

The Board set the monthly public hearing for subdivision and rezoning applications for 5:30 p.m. Oct. 12.

Next meeting: The Board’s next formal session is at 9 a.m. Sept. 28.