LAWTON – Comanche County and the Comanche Nation will work together on rebuilding sections of Southeast 45th Street and 15th Street in Lawton.
The Comanche County Board of Commissioners voted 3-0 July 21 to approve intergovernmental agreements with the Comanche Nation for the two projects, which are both located in District 1. As part of the agreements, the tribe will provide the county with $145,000 for reconstructing SE 45th Street from Woodlawn Road south to Tinney Road and an additional $42,000 for upgrading 15th Street from Coombs Road south to Woodlawn Road.
The county recently completed a separate project with the Comanche Nation, which made improvements to King Road extending from 135th Street east to 180th Street, said Commissioner Ryan John, who represents District 1.
“We are proud to continue our strong working relationship with the Comanche Nation and look forward to future collaboration,” he said in an email to a Southwest Ledger reporter. “The partnership has been mutually beneficial, bringing valuable knowledge, experience, and results to our shared efforts.”
The King Road project covered a three-mile section and included three inches of asphalt, John said. Since county crews are unable to perform asphalt paving, that work was bid out to HG Jenkins Construction.
The Comanche Nation supplied funding for the King Road project, and the county completed the tasks that fell within its scope of work, John said.
Southeast 45th Street and 15th Street will both be chip sealed with two layers. The 45th Street project will also address weak areas by using recycled concrete aggregate to reinforce the road base and reduce the risk of future failures.
“For these projects, the tribe covers the cost of materials, while the county handles installation, construction, and ongoing maintenance,” John said. “45th Street has already been recycled, and the recycled concrete aggregate has been installed.”
John said his crew plans to complete the county road projects after municipal road projects in Geronimo, Elgin and Fletcher are finished. He added that the Geronimo road projects is completed, and the county is about onethird of the way the Elgin project.
In other business, the Comanche County Development Authority approved a $10,000 raise for Comanche County Detention Center Administrator David Weber. The raise boosts Weber’s salary from $90,000 a year to $100,000.
The authority approved the pay increase following Weber’s performance review, which took place in a closeddoor session.