Rock Island Today

Following four years as South Moline Township's  road commissioner, Bob Schultz said he has decided to run for re-election in April.

Schultz served four years South Moline Township trustee before being elected to his first term as road commissioner in 2013. He was also a maintenance technician for East Moline School District 37.

He considers his last term a success largely due to the amount of roads his staff were able to resurface. “Over 10 percent of roads were resurfaced,” Schultz told Rock Island Today.

The city of Moline experienced a surplus, which the Road Maintenance Department was able to use for resurfacing projects.

In addition to the resurfacing projects, Schultz and his department were able to keep up with snow and ice removal. “Keeping the roads: that’s our number-one priority,” Schultz said.

If re-elected, Schultz said he would like to continue resurfacing the township’s roads without the need to raise taxes.

He said he will also be focusing on the drainage issue in the city, which he considers to be the second biggest priority. “The drainage issues that are impacting quite a few people need to be dealt with,” Schultz said.

Schultz said he has a “Ditch Digging Plan” to help alleviate some of the stress on the ditches and keep water flowing through the township. “It doesn’t sound professional, but that’s essentially what it is,” he said. “The ditches have been silted in, so the water has no where to go.”

Schultz and his department have met with the city of Moline and Rock Island County to try and find solutions on how to address the drainage issue. “One of the biggest obstacles is money,” Schultz said. “Trying to do it in budget.”

Not only are the ditches filling with silt, the city is also having a beaver dam problem. Schultz said he has met with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to find solutions, but no one yet has been able to find a way to prevent the beaver dams.

In addition to winter snow and ice control, road repairs and ditch cleaning, the Road Maintenance Department oversees tree trimming and removal, roadside mowing, the mosquito abatement control program and signage.