HOLDREGE, Neb. – The Central Nebraska Public Power & Irrigation Board of Directors moved swiftly through the agenda at the May board meeting on Monday (May 4) in Holdrege.
Directors approved a work order for the Johnson Lake Inlet Bridge in the amount of $3 million and voted to sign an agreement with Oak Creek Engineering of Kearney for the full design, bidding and construction observation of the inlet bridge in the amount of $346,790. Last month, the board approved an interlocal agreement with Gosper County for the bridge replacement at the Johnson Lake inlet.
At the meeting on Monday, the directors gave approval for the preliminary estimate to remove the existing timber bridge and construct a new steel and concrete bridge. This estimated work order of $3 million includes the cost of materials and work done by Oak Creek Engineering. The engineering firm now will complete geotechnical exploration of the site and create a road profile layout for different bridge type options.
Hydraulic Operations Manager Cory Steinke reported to the board that Oak Creek will be evaluating either a concrete girder bridge or a steel plate girder bridge. He reminded the board that design will start right away and construction could begin late 2026. Earliest completion date of the project could be late summer of early fall of 2027, however it is expected to be done prior to 2028 recreation season.
Gosper County has started early construction of a new temporary road near Central’s supply canal to allow traffic flow during the bridge work.
Also at Monday’s meeting:
- The board approved the official job description for the General Manager position. A job posting of the opening was sent out last week by Woods Aitken law firm who was hired to assist in the search process. The job was advertised in several news outlets, distributed to relevant trade organizations and is available on the CNPPID website.
- Irrigation and Water Services Manager Scott Dicke reported that the Phelps Canal is full of irrigation water all the way down to the Minden area and they will begin filling laterals on both the E65 and Phelps Canal. Customers are currently taking water from the E67 canal.
- Directors approved moving the date of the May working meeting of the board to Thursday, May 21, 2026 in Holdrege.
- Steinke reported that Lake McConaughy’s elevation was at 3,229 feet on Monday (49.5% of capacity) which is two feet below the highest point of the spring season that occurred in March. Inflows are around 245 cubic feet per second (cfs), while outflows were at 735 cfs. Steinke said a potential winter storm in the mountains this week could potentially help the low inflows into McConaughy as well as send needed water down the South Platte River.