Jasper County has agreed to take the lead in requesting a Revitalize Iowa’s Sound Economy (RISE) Grant for a road improvement project just across the county line. Jasper County Engineer Mike Frietsch says Co-Line Manufacturing of Lynnville is planning a $4,251,000 expansion in Mahaska County that would create at least 25 new jobs.

“So now the entrances to the new facilities will be on gravel, we are going to get a lot of truck traffic on that gravel. So we approached them about paving another quarter mile of that road.”

The road is South 128th Avenue East. Frietsch says the grant would cover 50% of the paving cost, while Jasper and Mahaska County would each have to come up with $100,000 at most. Jasper County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Jeff Davidson says Co-Line is looking at growing operations on the Jasper County side of the County Line as well.

“We are working with them right now on a couple of projects on the Jasper County side of the line. One would be an expansion of their Jasper County Plant and the other would be an auxiliary facility in the same neck of the woods.”

If the RISE grant is approved, Frietsch says the paving project would be completed in late spring or next fall.