Upon Dave Ohnstad’s departure as Supervisor of the Ravalli Road and Bridge Department, the position was split into two positions by the Ravalli County Board of Commissioners (BOC). One position created was for an Administrator, the other was for an Operations Manager. The Administrator position was filled by Eric Anderson. The Operations Manager position remained unfilled for the six months that Mr. Anderson served as Administrator.
I attended many of the Commissioners’ meetings in which Mr. Anderson addressed the BOC. He professionally informed the BOC of the condition of roads and bridges in Ravalli county – providing a no-nonsense assessment. He solicited triage priorities and consistently advised of a deteriorating county road network in need of a realistic long-term funding plan to prevent further decline. He dedicated a significant amount of time in the BOC meetings addressing the personnel management concerns of BOC members.
Mr. Anderson also interacted with members of the public including myself on innumerable occasions. Every question or concern that I brought to Mr. Anderson was dealt with in an immediate, professional manner. When he said something would happen, it did. Simple as that.
While grappling with many external and internal challenges, the Ravalli County Road and Bridge Department with Mr. Anderson at the helm accomplished the following major tasks this summer (as reported in a mid-September BOC meeting):
Physical Achievements
North Kootenai prepped and surfaced with millings (2.0 miles)
Lower Woodchuck prepped and surfaced with millings (2.0 miles)
Meadow Vista millings (0.5 miles)
Asphalt patching applied (850 tons)
Illegal Snyder Pit dumpsite cleared
West Fork major guardrail repair
Old Darby Road graveled (approx. 4 miles)
Granite Creek graveled (2.31 miles)
Lake Como shouldered, chip sealed, striped and signage placed (3.6 miles)
Lost Horse milled and reclamite applied (1 mile)
Ravalli County Airport crack sealing project
Arduini materials pit reclamation
Old Corvallis Road/Fair Grounds intersection improvement paving project
13 culverts installed
Gravel road surface stabilization/magnesium chloride application (1500 tons over 40+miles)
Ambrose Creek flooding repair and regravel
Stevi River Road millings application
4 Corners/3 Mile project for BRWF
Hauled 800 cubic yards of sand for the Ravalli County Fairgrounds
Administrative Achievements
Fiscal Year 2013 Road and Bridge Department budget created
Westside Road project reimbursement
Off system bridge request
Cost estimations for the Old Corvallis Road/Fair Grounds intersection improvement paving project
Floodplain permit for Meadow Vista work
Floodplain permit for Blodgett Park
Organized crusher to Harris Pit
Mr. Anderson has served Ravalli County well in his tenure as Ravalli County Road and Bridge Department Administrator and deserves a public acknowledgement for his professionalism and dedication to providing the best maintained county road system possible given chronic insufficient funding.
Chris Hockman
Hamilton