County Commission Grapples with 133rd Avenue Project Extension
M.K. French
Farmer Staff Writer
The McKenzie County Board of Commissioners met on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, to address a packed agenda that included updates on infrastructure projects. A significant portion of the discussion centered on a proposed extension of the 133rd Avenue Reconstruction Project, with commissioners debating the financial implications and engineering challenges of continuing the road further north than originally planned.
Harvey Fitzgerald of Interstate Engineering provided a detailed update on the project’s status. Bids for the base project, which runs to the north end of the subdivision, came in under budget at approximately $4.1 million. Construction is anticipated to begin later this month. While the base project is moving forward, the commission spent considerable time discussing a request to extend the road further north to the township line.
Fitzgerald presented two distinct options for this extension: Option 1: Extending the road past the Bruins driveway (an additional 455 feet). This would provide necessary access but carries an estimated additional cost of $242,000. Option 2: Continuing the road all the way to the township line.
This option presents significantly more challenges, including the need to cut down a large hill to meet proper engineering standards for sight distance, and dealing with wetlands and a creek crossing. The estimated additional cost for this full extension is $625,000.
The commission acknowledged the township’s desire for the extension but raised serious concerns about the increased complexity and cost. Commissioners were adamant about the need for financial participation from the township, with one emphasizing that the county should not bear the entire burden of an extension that primarily benefits local property owners: “If we’re going to push it that far out, let’s go ahead and get some agreement here that the township can have some skin in the game…If not, then we stop at the original plan...and call it a day.”
Other commissioners agreed, noting that the $625,000 option, in particular, presented too many unknowns regarding wetland permitting and engineering difficulties.
The commission reached a tentative consensus to proceed only with the shorter, $242,000 extension to the north side of the Bruins driveway, and only if the township agrees to be responsible for those additional costs. If the township does not commit to funding this portion, the project will be completed as originally bid, stopping at the top of the hill near Tiger Well Service.