Jasper County seeks estimates to remove concrete bunkers in town square

May 12 — Supervisors directed maintenance to find estimates of how much it would cost to remove concrete bunkers outside the Jasper County Courthouse, an initiative that has been discussed in recent years. The bunkers served as aesthetically pleasing markers in downtown Newton, but proved challenging.

Maintenance crews often have difficulty navigating bunkers for heavy snow removal. Previous attempts at concrete replacement projects proposed removing the bunkers, but the bids were too high and put the projects on hold. But the county has set aside money for concrete work.

Jasper County Maintenance Director Adam Sparks said there was $40,000 in the fiscal year 2024 budget that was used for flat work on the exterior of the courthouse. The municipality focused its efforts on concrete plazas that were raised, broken or had some other flaw that could have caused an accident.

With another $40,000 earmarked for concrete work in the fiscal year 2025 budget, Sparks needed to know if supervisors wanted the bunkers removed. When carrying out leveling work, maintenance made sure to stay away from squares that were close to or attached to the bunkers.

If supervisors wanted the bunkers removed, it would likely require crews to excavate the newly set concrete, which would be a waste of money.

“We didn’t want to rip it out and waste all that concrete,” Sparks said. “So I think the question is moving forward… Are we going to keep the bunkers? Can the bunkers go away? I need to know that so I can figure out how we’re going to spend this money and know what to say to the people who are running for this project.”

The bunkers are located in the northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast corners of the city’s central square.

Sparks said he would like to focus first on the two sets of bunkers on the north side of the town square. The south side bunkers could be more difficult due to their proximity to U.S. Route 6, which Sparks suggested would require collaboration with the Iowa Department of Transportation.

He also knows that the US$40,000 budget for concrete works will not cover all the bunkers at once. The bunkers on the north side are also equipped with drains. After speaking with city staff, Sparks determined there is no set standard that needs to be followed, but there needs to be some type of drainage system there.

Without installing the drainage system, Sparks estimated it would cost about $15,000 to remove just one set of bunkers. Depending on the price of adding a drainage system, the county could have enough room in the budget to remove both bunkers on the north side. The supervisors did not oppose his removal.

But they wanted to know how much it would cost.

When asked by supervisors why the bunkers were installed, Sparks said it was a project led by a group that is not as active or has disbanded completely. The bunkers were paid for by a group many decades ago. Since then, other groups have turned to other means of beautification.

For example, Newton Main Street uses seasonal planters during the spring and summer months, and they can be removed before the winter months.