The Pottawatomie County Commissioners brought in Wabunsee County to listen as the reports of the November and May pull tests on the Belvue Bridge were discussed and recommendations made by both representatives from the Kansas Department of Transportation and BG Consultants.
Dave Megger, with KDOT, discussed how the two pull tests showed the strength of the bridge to be far less than the recommendations.
The November tests showed a PSI of 33, where the proper recommendations would hold that the strength of the concrete needs to be between 175 to 250. Because of this lack of strength, the bridge would have to be milled down and there is no guarantee this would get past the damaged portion of the bridge.
Moni El-Aasar, with BG Consultants, explained the milling could cause the re-barb within the bridge to be exposed because of the removal of the damaged portion and cause the bridge to fall under its own weight. The exposure would also lead to the proposed polymer to have a surface in which could not be effectively bonded to, “being a waste of money”.
Both Megger and El-Aasar made their recommendations to find another alternative for the bridge.
Other items on the agenda included a couple of field trips for the commission.
As the completion date draws nearer for the new Justice Center, the commission took some time to walk through the building and check the progress being made. After completing the tour, they made their way to see the finished EMS building in Westmoreland.
Also on the agenda were department updates included hearing from Lois Schlegel, County Appraiser, Dustin Trego, Managment Assistant of Operations, Chris Trudo, Emergency Managment Director, and Bruce Brazzle, Fire Supervisor.
To end their day, the commission also held a work session concerning the budget to review where departments stand based upon their budget requests.
