COMMISSIONERS REACH SETTLEMENT WITH BNSF

  

The Commissioners of Washington County reached a long awaited settlement this morning (Tuesday) when they accepted a $250,000 agreement with Burlington Northern Santa Fe.

The Commissioners settled for that figure with BNSF in interest of having the money go towards a return on what was spent to repair damages caused by the trucks moving in and out of the county as BNSF repaired their bridge damaged by last year’s flood.

Earlier in April, the County had decided to contract out the services needed to repair the road, at which time the cost was estimated at approximately $3 million, though a figure from November of 2016 suggested closer to 1.7 million. The initial offer from BNSF, as reported back in April, was $200,000.

BNSF was resistant to a settlement in the first place, as they insisted that, as taxpayers to Washington County, they would have the right to use the roads as well. Records through the tax office show that the company paid approximately $26,243 in taxes to Road and Bridge in 2016, and approximately $80,577 to the General Fund.

The Commissioners discussed the long deliberations they faced with the railroad, and Commissioner Kirk Hanath had the following to say about the decision to settle.

The repairs to the roads for the County have since been completed.