KILGORE, Neb. - Cherry County commissioners are considering applying for a grant to enhance the safety of Kilgore Road while avoiding road realignment, which has raised concerns among local landowners.

As previously reported by News Channel Nebraska, KLJ Engineering approached the commissioners about supporting a grant application to improve BIA Highway 1 in South Dakota and extend the project south into Nebraska to address Kilgore Road’s hazardous curves.

“Over the years we’ve heard a lot about the dangerous curves on Kilgore Road. There have been a lot of crashes, and many of those are around the curves,” said Tonya Huber of KLJ Engineering.

During Tuesday’s meeting, commissioners discussed modifying their letter of support to specify that any project would exclude road realignment. Several landowners attended the meeting to voice concerns about how realignment might impact their property.

“I’m not willing to go against the local landowners,,” said Commissioner Mike McConaughey.

“We don’t want to waste anyone’s time or money. We can agree that the road needs improvements, but from the feedback from landowners, I know rerouting it won’t make anyone happy,” said Commissioner Nina Nelson.

Huber noted that other safety measures could be considered, such as widening the curves, installing guardrails, and reducing speed limits.

If commissioners agree to support the grant, it would only apply to planning and design. If the county disapproves of the plan, it would not be obligated to participate in the second phase, which involves construction.