MISSOULA — Driving around Missoula County, it’s no secret that some of the roads, both paved and unpaved, are in poor condition, and that’s not to mention some of the bridges in the county.
Missoula County is well aware of this and is seeking to increase the amount of funding that it receives for infrastructure, with a levy on the ballot this year.
Watch the full story to learn more:
“Our infrastructure is in pretty poor condition. And we would definitely be utilizing this money to upgrade our infrastructure throughout Missoula County,” said Missoula County Chief Public Works Officer Jason Mitchell.
Missoula County manages 264 miles of paved roads and 180 miles of gravel roads. The county also maintains 123 bridges and nine pedestrian bridges, many of which are in less-than-ideal condition.
“We just performed a pavement condition index and a lot of our roads came back in poor condition, which means that they either need to be chip-sealed or completely ripped up and redone. In some cases, we could perform overlays to lengthen the life of that road. But in totality, our PCI is showing us that our roads are in pretty poor shape here in Missoula County,” said Mitchell.
The county would prioritize repaving and repairing roads within its jurisdiction, not roads shared with the city.
“We really are looking to use this money for are Big Flat Road, Patty Canyon Road, Blue Mountain,” said Mitchell.
Watch previous coverage:
While roads may be the priority, some of the funding will also go to bridge repairs, like Boy Scout Bridge in Seeley Lake.
“We tried not to really concentrate just on one area, because as you know, this is a countywide infrastructure levy. So we want the money to be going around the community, around the county, to benefit the citizens throughout the county,” said Mitchell.
The levy the county is seeking would be permanent, meaning each year they will receive $1.8 million. The average annual cost for taxpayers in the county would be approximately $26.
Ballots need to be in the mail next week in order to be received on time.
