Culvert to be replaced
Staff writer
City council members unanimously accepted a $20,850 bid to fix a collapsed 40-foot culvert at Lincoln and Main Sts. in Marion.
In addition to replacing the culvert, a new concrete wall will surround it.
“If the culvert wears out eventually, there’s still a concrete wall all the way through there,” city administrator Brian Wells said. “That’s the goal in that.”
Construction will start within the next two weeks and take two to three days to complete, Wells said.
Should existing sewer boxes need to be removed and replaced, it would cost the city $3,600 to replace them with lids.
“If they don’t come down, we’ll just leave them alone,” Wells said. “Eventually, with the next … project, we could replace those and bring them up to-date.”
Mayor Mike Powers asked where money to pay for repairs will come from.
Wells said it most likely would have to come from the remainder of the city’s special highway fund for fiscal 2026.
“We won’t be doing anything else,” Wells said.
Minor flooding has become a problem after heavy rain in recent years, like in October, 2025, when 4½ to 5 inches of rainfall forced city workers to drain water from the industrial park into Eisenhower Rd.
Third St., outside of the Record building, still overflows with water when heavy rains fall.