Buena Vista County awards $11.1 million paving contract for two roads

Buena Vista County supervisors unanimously awarded an $11,149,889.85 paving contract Tuesday for two of the county’s most heavily used corridors, Business Highway 71 on Storm Lake’s north side and County Road N14 between Highway 3 and Albert City. The low bid came from Croell, Inc. of New Hampton, and the Iowa Department of Transportation reviewed and approved the amount before the board acted.

County Engineer Bret Wilkinson recommended awarding the job and authorizing him to sign the paperwork electronically. The contract carries a late start date of April 1, 2027, although work could begin sooner if all approvals are finished before then. Wilkinson also said the county will hold a pre-construction meeting with landowners along both routes before crews move in.

The project package was bundled together to draw more bidders and better pricing, a move the county said worked as intended. Eight bidders competed for the work, and the award now locks in the contractor and the cost for one of Buena Vista County’s largest roadway investments.

The rebuilds come after years of planning and repeated delays. The county had both projects on its five-year budget and had hoped to move them earlier, but funding limits and added road pressure tied to the Platinum Crush project pushed them back. County officials have said the two corridors total more than eight miles and sit near the top of the county’s transportation priorities.

Business 71 has drawn the most attention because of the condition of the road itself. Wilkinson said the pavement has an unusually thick 16-inch structure, with 8 inches of asphalt over 8 inches of concrete, but core samples showed deep structural problems and poor subgrade beneath it. He said a simple overlay would not last and that the road needs a full rebuild.

N14 will also get a full pavement replacement, along with drainage fixes at the C29 intersection. Wilkinson has said the route carries significant truck traffic, and earlier traffic counts placed Business 71 among the county’s heaviest-used roads and N14 just behind it. In another update, he said Business 71 has the highest vehicle count in the county.

For Storm Lake residents, commuters, and farm traffic moving between Storm Lake, Truesdale, Albert City and Alta, the work will mean months of planning before equipment reaches the road. It also promises a long-delayed payoff: new pavement, corrected drainage and a rebuild meant to handle the traffic that has worn the old routes down for years.