The Clymer Town Board heard a presentation from the state Department of Transportation regarding an upcoming culvert replacement project on Route 474. P-J photo by Sara Holthouse

CLYMER — A culvert replacement project on Route 474 is planned for the summer of 2024.

The state Department of Transportation presented the project to Clymer Town Board members recently. Scott McKay, project manager, said the most important issue they needed to discuss with the town is the detour that will come with the culvert replacement.

“Not that we couldn’t do this project with sort of staged construction, but it would take three times longer and cost more money,” McKay said. “If we can use this detour, we’re talking about a month’s worth of work.”

McKay said the detour would go off of Route 10 and County Route 23. There will be signs on Route 474 so that motorists coming from either direction will see that the road is closed and know to take the detour. The detour does not preclude any other road drivers may choose to use and, altogether, will be around 3.5 miles long, meaning it will take less than 10 minutes to take the detour.

“It’s a pretty deep cut out there,” McKay said of the planned work.

McKay said construction is set for 2024, with time constraints for the contractors. They aim for a time of year when there are no buses traveling on the road and after the holidays, so planned construction is for after the Fourth of July. The Clymer Town Board discussed weight limits on both roads that are involved in the planned detour and how it might affect the Amish community. Farm equipment in the area was also discussed, though nobody necessarily will need to be traveling in that area. Emergency services will be notified of the detour as well.

Signs will also be placed in the area warning that the road will be closed starting on a specific date. McKay said advanced detail plans will be sent in February.

The Town Board agreed that the project should not have a problem as long as the state DOT sticks with the Fourth of July timeline.

Other business discussed includes:

– The second public hearing for the town’s second solar project was held. The main topic of discussion was landscaping and growth around the project to shield it from view for neighboring houses and the road. The plan is to make it look like it is part of the property.

Emergency shut downs and brown outs were also discussed.

– The town received a $5 million grant for improvements in its water system. Following an income study done in the fall, the town received hardship status, which Town Supervisor Brian Willink said is good and could potentially increase the first grant amount and help get more grants. The town has to accept the grant by the end of January, with a two-year time frame to show development.

– The town Highway Department is sharing a purchase of a bucket truck with the town of Harmony.