Lauderdale County supervisors are planning to replace several dilapidated bridges with their allocation of Local System Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation funds.

In a meeting Monday, the board of supervisors approved proposals to use LSBP funds for bridge projects on Murphy Road, Byrd Doener Road and Wildcat Road.

Road Manager Rush Mayatt said the three bridges are projects that need to be done, and the board’s action is the first step in the repair process.

“We’re just trying to program and prioritize those LSBP projects that just need to be completed,” he said. “That’s all it is.”

Counties receive LSBP funds through the Mississippi Office of State Aid Road Construction to help fix local bridges that aren’t eligible for State Aid funding.

Mayatt said an additional requirement is that bridges must be under an efficiency rating of 50 before they’re eligible to be fixed with LSBP funds. In Lauderdale County, he said, not many bridges meet that requirement.

“A lot of our roads or bridges do not have that rating, which is why they go as State Aid projects,” he said.

In other business, the board of supervisors approved:

•advertising for bids for a bridge project on Lizelia Road;

•purchasing a 2020 John Deere Excavator for the Road Department;

•advertising for bids for a fire engine;

•renewal of an employee assistance program with Weems Mental Health from Oct. 1, 2021 to Sept. 30, 2022. The program provides screenings for the sheriff’s department and counseling appointments for county employees;

•hiring Jonas Carter as the Lauderdale County Solid Waste Enforcement Officer in a 4-1 vote. District 2 Supervisor Wayman Newell voted against the action.