Commissioners, residents discuss Club Hall Road

Facing concerns over road maintenance costs and a road department stretched thin, commissioners in Foster County have recently been debating whether to grind up the paved Club Hall Road and turn it to gravel.

Located in eastern Foster County, the Club Hall Road cuts through Eastman and McKinnon Townships for eight miles between Kensal Road (85th Ave Northeast) and Highway 20. For residents in the area it's a road they use often, and they weren't happy to hear it may soon be turned to gravel.

Commissioners solicited bids in the Independent for a "full-depth reclamation" of the Club Hall road for three weeks beginning on May 20, and at their regular meeting on Tuesday, June 18 those bids were opened.

There were two options available for the project, and Border States Paving was the lower bidder for both.

The first option was for the contractor to do all work necessary for the project, for which Border States' bid was $460,291.71. The second option would instead have Foster County doing some of the blading work for the project, and the low bid from Border States for that option totaled $428,875.71.

However, no motion was carried to accept a bid, as commissioners needed time to determine how to pay for the project.

In the meantime, dissent was brewing. Despite the topic's coverage in this newspaper and appearance in county commission minutes over the past few months, township residents say they didn't hear about the project until after the bids were opened. They asked for an opportunity to discuss the matter with commissioners.

On Wednesday, July 10, a special meeting of the Foster County Commission was held for the purpose of hearing residents' concerns, and around a dozen township residents turned up.

Commissioners began the special meeting by explaining why they believe turning one of Foster County's roads to gravel is necessary.

"The general concern we've had all along ... is that 91 miles of paved highway is more than the tax base in Foster County can handle, so that would force us to get to this point at some point," explained commission chairman David Utke.

"We've been trying to come up with a way to maintain the roads to make them last as long as possible, and our road department has done a great job of that," Utke added. "... but it's getting to the point where that's taking too much expense and too much time from our road department."

According to an April 2024 report from Wold Engineering, 42 of the county's 91 miles of paved road are in need of some kind of action, whether that be an overlay, reconstruction or grading/reconstruction.

The report further states that a full grading/reconstruction project for the Club Hall Road would cost the county nearly $7,000,000, which is simply not affordable according to Utke.

Alternatively, turning the road to gravel would cost just over $400,000 and would save the county thousands every year in maintenance costs while allowing the road department to focus on the other 34 miles of paved roads that need attention.

Township residents made several points in response, among them were that there is too much traffic on the Club Hall Road for it to be gravel, and that the road itself is in better shape than it has been in years.

"It would be a shame to tear it up now," said one resident, while another suggested the county grind up the Murphy Road instead – a roughly 6-mile-long paved road just a few miles southeast of Carrington which has also required significant maintenance costs.

Commissioners said they had considered turning the Murphy Road to gravel as well, but ultimately settled on the Club Hall road for several reasons.

Commissioner Becky Hagel said the county has spent $93,000 in the past 1.5 years maintaining the road, and according to the report from Wold Engineering, the road's eight miles have the least ADT (Average Daily Traffic) of any of the county's 42 miles of paved roads that need attention.

"When I look at the finances, I don't think I can be financially responsible to the taxpayers of the county to continue what we've been doing," said Utke. "That's my personal opinion."

The ADT numbers were acquired by the N.D. Department of Transportation in 2022, and they show that the Club Hall Road's west 5 miles have an ADT of 55, while the east 3 miles have an ADT of 40. The next lowest is the Murphy road's east four miles, with an ADT of 70.

Residents suggested the ADT numbers were inaccurate and remained adamant that commissioners should hold off on turning the road to gravel, insisting it still has several years of life left.

One resident suggested at least waiting until after the upcoming general election, in hopes that additional funding opportunities could become available.

In the end, the commissioners and residents discussed the project for just over an hour and no agreement was reached, nor was any final decision made by the commission.

With vice chairman Scott Beumer not in attendance for the special meeting, the other commissioners elected to table any motion on whether or not to accept a bid from Border States Paving until their next regular meeting on Tuesday, July 16 at 3:30 p.m. in the Foster County Courthouse.