Eilers to Donate Trail Bridge

Another incentive was that his mother, Anne, was seriously injured in the past when she was struck by a vehicle while riding her bicycle. The bridge will keep people off the road, Eilers said.

He told the Hub the value of the bridge will depend on the final location selected, but it’s estimated at around $300,000. The bridge will be 180 to 200 feet long and 10 feet wide.

Eilers said it likely will be manufactured in three parts at his plant and then moved to the trail.

The CNPPID board passed a resolution Monday accepting the offer from the Eilers family and authorizing the Central staff to work with the Johnson Lake Trails Committee on the other components of the bridge project.

The resolution also thanked committee members for their hard work to complete the Johnson Lake trail.

CNPPID Gothenburg Division Manager Kevin Boyd told the Hub that Central will provide about $150,000 toward completing the bridge project, including the costs to prepare the site and to design, transport and install the bridge.

The board also approved an agreement with Miller & Associates of Kearney for bridge-related engineering for $22,405. CNPPID General Manager Don Kraus said Miller staff will work with R.O. Youker Consulting Engineers of Lincoln on the bridge design.

Ron Fowler of Johnson Lake Development Inc. told the board there are many activities this month at the lake, starting with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s Family Adventure Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 18 at the main campground.

On May 25, there will be the annual garage sales around the lake, plus the EMS 5K run-walk at 10 a.m. and Memorial Weekend fireworks at 10 p.m. Boating safety training will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 26 at the EMS building.

In other business Monday, CNPPID public relations adviser Tim Anderson said state Sen. Tom Carlson’s priority bill, LB517, is expected to pass in the 2013 legislative session. The bill would create the Water Sustainability Project Task Force to study Nebraska water projects, programs and activities, and set funding priorities.

Anderson said LB517 is on final reading, but there are continuing disagreements about who should be on the task force and whether the governor should make those appointments.

The $1 million allocated for the task force study remains in the budget, he added.

“This is a pretty aggressive schedule,” Anderson said, which calls for a task force report by November. “It will be almost like a full-time job.”

Also Monday, the CNPPID board:

- Awarded a contract for $99,955 to Jim Ostgren Construction Co. of Holdrege for dirt work on the E65 Canal. It was the lowest of three bids on the project.

- Approved a revision to the 2013 Hydro Division budget for $15,900 for replacement of an open lateral with a pipeline on E65.

- Was told by Natural Resources Manager Mike Drain that he is reviewing a water right application made to the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources by the Central Platte Natural Resources District to transfer the natural flow right from the now-closed Six-Mile Canal in Dawson County to the Platte River. His review will make sure the change does not affect CNPPID rights or operations.