The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1923-02-09
County Highway Engineer
Details Work Done In 1922
Report Made To The Blue Earth Commits.
sioners Filled With Information of
Interest To Taxpayers

Efficient development Of the blue
Earth county department of roads
along economic lines was shown in
the annual department report made
to the county commissioner yester-
day by J. W. Hruska, county high=
way engineer. Valued cooperation
of the entire membership of the
county board and the aid CIV
en- by his assistant, C. j. Swift,
was the prime factor in enabling the
department to carry road and bridge
work of the county forward to the
extent it has reached at present, &C
cording to Hruska. The report given
by Engineer Hruska yesterday was
an itemiZed detail Of every expendi-
ture and iota of work accomplished
during the past year ~, -
In making his report of last year
and detailing some Of the work plan
ned in the road and bridge program
for the coming year, Engineer
Hruska declared that Blue Earth
county already had 1885 miles OF
state aid roads completed and that
with the present program for this
year completed, all of the state aid
roads would be graded and graveled.
This latter statement is made upon
the consideration that the depart
ment is enabled to regrade and
gravel the Strand Ravine road which
enters Mankato from the southwest.
The above mentioned road is one
Of the heavily travelled roads lead
ing into the city, and will necessi-
tate quite an engineering feat to
complete it satisfactory. The pres
ant xNln 10 xS1I
ON during the coming year, to cut
Strand hill. At the present time
there are twenty three curves on
the hill road.
Work For The Year :
In connection with the work
planned for next year it was men
toned that thirty seven miles of
road would be graveled. There will
also be the construction of the road
west Of Vernon Center and the road
from here to Cambria.
In the report which states that
1885 miles of state aid road were
completed last year, 102 miles are
itemiZed as surfaced roads. A frac
ton over twelve miles of road were
graded but not graveled. Unimprov-
ed roads in the county were 1906
miles. OF the total amount of road
construction work POT miles were
graded by. contract; 24k miles were
graded by they county department;
44.02 miles were graveled by the
county force; IA miles were resur-
faced by the county force and two
miles of township road was resurfac-
ed.
The maintenance cost for the year
amounted to $S3,023.63. OF this
amount $10,410.45 was expended for
twenty four miles of heavy grad
ing. The average cost of grading
per mile was $42492. The following
Is the expenditures on the various
county roads worked ION last year
showing the total cost and the cost
per cubic yard. 80
Cost of re- surfacing the county
resurfacing road in Lime township
$S45.7s. Cost of grading Good Thun-
der road, seven miles long. in 1922
was $15,821.57; amount expended on
the same, road during 1921 was
$6,153.82. The road construction
work was done by Jack Brown, con-
tractor. The total cost of the grad
ing work was $21.9S2.59. All OF the
jobs mentioned include laying of
culverts. bridges, etc.
Mapleton- Sterling Road
The cost Of grading the Mapleton-
Sterling road for 4.06 miles amount
ed to $21, 140.56. The total cost for
six and one half miles graded work
on the Lake Washington road to
date amounts to $19,99492. The
work has been approximately SO per
cent completed by the Enke Con-
struction company. The Duck Lake
road for two and one fourth miles
has been graded at a cost of S.
1880, by Jack Brown, contractor
On two and quarter miles of the
Minneopa road, $6,350.S8 has been
expended to date and is about 80
per cent completed
The total cost Of grayeling the