SIREN—Nothing is for sure yet, but the rehabilitation of three miles of County Road B, from Lind Road to Soderberg Road, looks to be pushed off the 2011 construction schedule.

That was the news from highway commissioner Bob Morehouse at last week’s Burnett County Infrastructure Committee meeting.

“It’s still possible that road could be built next year,” he told the committee. “But the reality is it could be 2012.”

The existing pavement of that section of County Road B is deteriorated and replacement is necessary to maintain the integrity of the driving surface and has been an issue for several years.

“When we first budgeted that section of road four years ago, we were looking at $568,000,” Morehouse continued. “Now we’re looking at just under $1 million.”

He went to an operational meeting in July thinking he had three options.

“I asked the Department of Transportation for more funding and they said ‘No,’” Morehouse said. “I asked them if I could shorten the project and they said ‘No.’”

He found he could submit for more funding but won’t hear until later this year.

The project is a federally funded 80 percent-20 percent split, which accounts for the $150,000 engineering fees.

“By using federal dollars, we have to jump through all of their hoops,” Morehouse admitted. “But I’ll continue to use federal dollars if it means we can build roads — we can’t afford to do it by ourselves.”

The plan is to replace the existing 22-foot roadway with new asphalt. A 24-foot roadway was considered, but it would not fit existing shoulder points.

“It’s a rehab project, otherwise it could be $1.5 million per mile,” Morehouse explained. “There are 17 horizontal and vertical curves that could be changed, bridges to replace, right-of-way to buy, just a lot of issues.”

“We are still at the engineering stage,” he said of the project. “Thirty percent of the plan is complete.”

“If you could get to the bid stage, the price might actually come down,” committee member Rick Anderson noted.

“Everyone who lives on that road would like to see it done,” Town of Siren resident Richard Costerisan pointed out. “But they would like to see it done right rather than it be done piecemeal.”

Morehouse said he has another project, County Road H, he could move to 2011 if the County Road B project is put on hold until 2012.

“If it’s delayed, I think the residents out there would be okay with it,” Costerisan offered.

In other business:

•The committee authorized the airport manager to proceed with petitioning the Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics for funds for future development at the Burnett County Airfield.

Reconstructing the airport apron, reconstructing Runway 5/23, developing a southeast taxiway and hangar area, purchasing and installing a new fueling system and general hangar construction are projects included on the list.

The projects total $2.4 million.

The county will not undertake any of the projects unless funded through the BOA.

“We really need to start marketing our airport,” committee chairman Chuck Awe noted.

•Morehouse said he would be fencing the Trade Lake Creamery site to keep people out. The county took the building over on a delinquent tax deed.

“It operated as a creamery from 1910 to 1964 and except for one corner, the building is still pretty solid,” he pointed out. “I would hope some historical society would step in and want to preserve it.”

•The committee went on record in favor of placing a transportation fund advisory referendum question on the November 2010 ballot.

In essence, the question will ask voters if the state should be prohibited from taking transportation funds to help balance the budget.