Projects given the green light

Two projects from the Hays County 2016 Road Bond will move forward after votes from the Hays County Commissioners Court on Tuesday.

The court approved a professional services agreement with Brown & Gay Engineers Inc. for the Preliminary Engineering Report on the Hillside Terrace rebuild project from Interstate Highway 35 to Farm to Market Road 2001.

“It needs a complete rebuild,” Precinct 2 Commissioner Mark Jones said.

The project entails the reconstruction and widening of the road, turning the current two-lane thoroughfare into a three-lane road. The expanded Hillside Terrace will have one travel lane with shoulders in each direction and a continuous left-turn lane.

“It’ll be a heavily traveled road,” Jones said, “so we need to get this done as soon as possible.”

The contract for the report comes with a price tag of $500,000.

The commissioners also approved a professional services agreement with LNV Inc. for plans, specifications and estimates services for intersection improvements at State Highway 21 and Farm to Market Road 1966.

“We’ve done lots of improvements on Highway 21 with the design of new intersections to improve the safety for those traveling on that roadway,” Precinct 1 Commissioner Debbie Gonzales Ingalsbe noted.

The agreement is for the preparation of construction documents associated with proposed turn lanes and roadway widening at the intersection. The contract is for $225,000.

In other business, as part of its consent agenda, the court authorized the county transportation department to purchase three solar school zone flashing systems from Electronics Corporation to help calm traffic in school zones on Old San Antonio Road and Manchaca Springs Road. According to the agenda, the county has purchased such equipment from Electronics Corporation before, so the new systems will interface with the current systems.