HIGHER COSTS COULD AFFECT WASHINGTON COUNTY’S ANNUAL ROAD MAINTENANCE LIST

  

Rising prices may lead to a change in priority on which Washington County roads are addressed this year.

County Engineer Wesley Stolz told Washington County Commissioners on Tuesday that higher costs for oil, materials and transportation, along with a booming construction market, led to the county only receiving one bid for seal coating for the contract year ending in April 2023.  Prices on that bid, which was accepted unanimously by commissioners, are up approximately 50 percent over last year for a standard per-square-yardage application of a one course seal, and up roughly 78 percent for a two course seal.

Stolz asked the court whether it would prefer to stick with the county’s current annual list of roads it plans to work on and pay more, or drop roads from the list to stay within budget.

 

The lone bidder was H&C Construction Company out of Shiner.  Stolz said the price difference of the one course and two course seal coat applications has risen from $1.82 per square yard to $2.73 per square yard, and $3.41 per square yard to $5.99 per square yard, respectively.

Stolz said the current market allows contractors to choose the work they do and the price they perform it at, with many of them opting to take higher-paying private jobs instead of public jobs.

 

Commissioners agreed to meet individually with Stolz this week to balance out the road list and determine which roads in their precincts need attention soon, and which ones could be pushed to next year.