Troubled bridges over usually calm waters occupied much of Tuesday’s meeting of the Codington County Board of Commissioners.

Mark Junker, an engineer for Banner Engineering of Brookings, gave his annual bridge report, something he’s done for Codington County three consecutive years. He has 19 years of bridge inspection experience.

Junker said the county has four bridges that will need major work during the next decade, five more during a 15-year span and two more during the next two decades. Of the nine bridges with the most immediate needs, five are on paved roads and four are on gravel.

Nine bridges are included in the county’s five-year bridge plan with a current estimated repair cost of $10 million, of which $3 million will be the county’s responsibility. The remaining dollars will need to come from federal funding or the South Dakota Department of Transportation’s Bridge Improvement Grant program.

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Competition for BIG funding is fierce with each county accumulating points that determine which county will receive state dollars and how much. The major determining factor is the condition of the bridge, but another factor is whether the county has a wheel tax in place. Codington county does. That tax is $2 per wheel in Codington County with a maximum of $8 to any taxpayer. It's added to the annual fees for license plate renewals.

Junker, who said he wasn’t necessarily advocating for a higher wheel tax, noted nearby counties of Brookings, Deuel, Grant and Lake all have higher wheel taxes. The commissioners responded by saying that two previous attempts to raise the wheel tax have been referred to a vote and defeated.

Counties without a wheel tax are not eligible for BIG funding.

Two bridges in the county are currently closed for repair, including one that is fully funded by federal dollars.

Junker said the 14th Avenue North bridge bordering the city of Watertown is the most in need of repairs. Last week, county Highway Superintendent Rick Hartley announced that load limits will soon be placed on that bridge.

Junker also handed out a series of photos showing problems with county bridges caused by several factors, including age, traffic, salt, erosion, metal fatigue and paint deterioration. He recommended ongoing maintenance whenever possible.

The start of Tuesday’s meeting saw four township officials and Owen McElroy from the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks question county officials how an old bridge in Waverly Township and a washed out culvert in Rauville Township can be repaired. Neither of the structures are on county-managed roads.

Commissioners and Hartley basically gave the same reply – submit a five-year plan to the state Department of Transportation before Aug. 31 regarding the condition of township bridges and larger culverts.

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The state culvert program is new in 2022. It sets aside $28 million to help townships deal with culvert issues, but townships must meet certain qualifying criteria. According to the state law establishing the program, township five-year plans should be submitted to county highway superintendents.

Funding set aside by the South Dakota Legislature has already been allocated to the counties, but a township must have an opt out or a secondary road levy of at least 50 cents per $1,000 in property value to qualify, and not all Codington County townships meet that requirement.

According to the program, commissioners in each county are required to approve the funding requests for culvert replacements.

Brent Henrichs and Scott Lentz of Rauville Township and Dan Thyen and Mark Comes of Waverly Township expressed concerns about a lack of direction and information from the county and the state.

In regard to the 6-foot diameter, 50-foot long culvert dislodged by heavy rains in Rauville township, Henrichs and Lentz were advised to initiate repairs and then submit the bill to the state – provided they also submit the assessment report.

In his monthly report to the commission, Sheriff Brad Howell said his department dealt with 635 cases and calls in July, including nine accidents, 82 arrest warrants and the serving of 155 civil papers.

The average daily population at the county jail was 65.35 inmates compared to 76.84 in July of 2021 and 64.43 in June of this year. Ninety people who weren’t incarcerated were being monitored daily by an assortment of methods.