(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors, Tuesday morning, heard a request from Massena Mayor Phil Przychodzin on behalf of the citizens of the town, for assistance with regard to fixing a road leading out of town.

The idea is to minimize the number of heavy trucks making their way through town.

He says the City recently purchased two properties that were on the north side of Clarke Street, so they could flatten the “S” curve and allow heavy trucks to bypass Main Street and keep the wear-and-tear on Clarke Street to a minimum. The plan is to re-route trucks through Clark Avenue.

Massena Mayor Phil Przychodzin (on the right in the camo jacket) speaks with the Cass BOS on 12-19-23

The road in question is about one-quarter of a mile long. The Supervisors noted that since Main Street is a designated Farm-to-Market Road, the City cannot place a weight restriction on it. It was explained that if the City of Massena wants to remove the Farm to Market designation, it would have to surrender an estimated $9,000 in funding for the road, as well attending a quarterly meeting with the Farm to Market Board.

Mayor Pryzchodzin said the City is willing to give-up those funds if it means Main Street would be prevented from continued damage from the overweight loads.

The board tasked Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken with finding solutions to the issue, including meeting with the Iowa Department of Transportation. Issues that remain include finding a replacement road to receive the Farm-to-Market funding, but that may be a project to include in the County’s 5-Year Road Plan.