Scott Co. road budget at plateau, commissioners say

Norman Brant's Scott County Highway Department personnel have their hands full just trying to keep the county's roads in drivable condition.

Pavement that was put down on some roads just a few years ago is already starting to break up, peeling off in layers that expose the dirt underneath, leaving huge potholes.

The roads require constant maintenance, Brant says as he surveys one of the worst, County Road 216, where washboard ripples and potholes make for a bumpy ride.

"We're going to spend every dollar we possibly can on roads," Brant said.

County commissioners say the Highway Department's $1.2 million budget has reached a plateau, where there's only enough money to maintain roads, not to significantly improve gravel roads by blacktopping. Another funding source is needed, and Presiding Commissioner Jamie Burger says one way to get that funding is through passage of the half-cent law enforcement sales tax extension on Tuesday's ballot.