27-03-2025
Kandiyohi County plans to replace 12 bridges in next five years
Mar. 27---- Kandiyohi County has 120 bridges, 72 of them county bridges. Of these, 24 are timber bridges. On average, these timber bridges are 59 years old. While bridge maintenance and minor repairs are common, larger repairs do not happen as often.
Recent changes to bridge inspection led to the closure of three timber bridges and weight restrictions being placed on others in 2024. In total, there are 17 bridges in
that have been deemed eligible for replacement, meaning it has deteriorated to the point that it may receive additional funding for replacement. When a bridge becomes eligible for replacement, more state and federal funding sources become available.
Posted bridges are safe for driving vehicles that do not exceed the weight limits. Exceeding those limits can apply undue pressure on the bridge which may cause damage to it.
"When we look at all the bridges, (the closed bridges are) a small percentage of the bridges. We are already ahead of it," Kandiyohi County Public Works Director Mel Odens said in an interview Friday.
Currently, plans are in place for 12 of the 17 timber bridges eligible for replacement to be replaced within five years. The other five bridges have had years assigned to them outside of the five-year plan, and are safe for traffic at the posted weight limits.
These and other Public Works Department matters were discussed March 18 when the
met specifically to address such topics, during what is often called the Road and Bridge meeting.
In 2024, Kandiyohi County Public Works took on a new method of bridge inspection. Previously, inspections were conducted visually, checking the condition of the timber through knocking on the wood to listen for compromised sections. Under the new inspection method, inspectors drill into the timber to measure the quality and decay of the wood.
"We did an advanced timber inspection last year to get a better handle on the remaining life of the timber support structure for these bridges. We had never done that before because it is a relatively newer system," Odens said.
According to the presentation Odens made to the Kandiyohi County Board on March 18, large portions of timber in the closed and weight-restricted bridges were found to be hollow after a few inches of drilling. These support columns are around a foot in diameter. Odens presented data on one tested support which showed signs of decay through 5 inches of its diameter. This bridge is set to be replaced this year.
"We evaluate the systems. The supports work together. There are redundancies in them. So if one member would fail or crack, there are others that would take over. We want to watch the system as a whole," Odens said in the interview Friday.
It was through these inspections that Kandiyohi County Public Works found the 17 timber bridges eligible for replacement.
The three closed bridges, located throughout southern Kandiyohi County, are scheduled to have work done in 2025 and 2026 to bring them back to operational condition.
Work to repair a bridge located on County Road 80, north of
, has been underway. Braces have been set up around the foundation of the bridge in order to support it. According to Odens, once temperatures remain above 34 degrees for at least a week, concrete will be poured to complete the repairs.
These repairs should allow the bridge's lifespan to be extended another five to 10 years, at which point the bridge would be scheduled to be replaced. The repair project is expected to cost about $25,000, according to Odens.
"We have got the forms up, ready to pour the concrete to encase the bad timbers. We haven't done it yet. We have to wait until it is above freezing," Odens said in the interview Friday.
Also to be done in 2025 is work on a closed bridge on 75th Avenue Southwest, between
and
. This bridge is scheduled to be replaced this year with a box culvert. According to the five-year plan, this project will cost around $850,000.
The final project on a closed bridge, a replacement for the bridge on 105th Avenue Southeast, just north of Big Kandiyohi Lake, is scheduled to take place in 2026 with an estimated cost of $550,000. The decision to complete this project in 2026 rather than 2025 came down to budgeting. It will remain closed until the project is complete.
Two other bridge replacements are scheduled for 2026, one on County Road 27 and another on County Road 31. In 2027, four more bridge replacement projects are scheduled, followed by two more bridge projects in 2028 and 2029.
The form of the replacement bridges in other projects has not been determined yet. According to Odens, each project will require its own planning and design which may lend itself to different kinds of bridges.
"You have to match the channel width, you have to match the flooding. ... Every site gets evaluated independently. It will either be a bridge or a box culvert, but most of the time it is box culverts," Odens said.
Of the 17 bridges identified as eligible for replacement, five are not scheduled within the five-year plan. These five bridges were left out due to budgeting constraints. However, according to Odens, if further inspections reveal accelerated deterioration, they may be moved up. The bridges remain safe for traffic within the posted weight limits.
The cost to replace all 17 eligible timber bridges would total $10 million, according to the presentation last week.
