![]() "Do we try for (the grant) and probably get turned down? Or should we sealcoat a few more 100 feet of road? These are the choices we end up making," he said. But they also have to use this funding to hire an engineering firm to write state grant applications if they want to be competitive for infrastructure funding. He said that money regularly goes toward replacing gravel on unpaved roads and doing regular maintenance. Farmington is responsible for 40 miles of roads and their annual road budget is around $124,000. Hesse said this has been a problem for his community. So when you create these funding streams that are competitive grant programs, if you don't have the capacity to write grants, well it sort of leaves you out of the game," he said. "These small communities just do not have access to grant writing. But he said the incident highlights the fact that rural communities like his need more funding to keep up with infrastructure needs, especially as the cost of repairs continues to rise. Hesse said the driver of the truck that collapsed the crossing wasn't hurt and none of the fertilizer or fuel spilled into the creek. "But the needs are so great that structures like this, on smaller town roads that don't see a lot of daily use, we just fall through the cracks." ![]() "We have been applying for state aid through the local road improvement discretionary grants," Hesse said. The crossing is less than 20 feet in length, which means it doesn't qualify as a bridge under federal regulations and isn't eligible for federal funding for repairs or improvements. He said town officials knew some of the beams under the structure were starting to rust and they have been trying to find the funding to repair it. Mike Hesse is chair of the Town of Farmington, the rural community where the crossing on M. The ask comes after a century-old creek crossing in northern La Crosse County collapsed under a fertilizer truck April 15. The Wisconsin Towns Association is calling on lawmakers to fund a statewide assessment of small bridges.
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