Published: June 12, 2009 08:59 am      

County OKs stimulus-funded road projects

Government timeline limits list of potential plans

CUMBERLAND — The Allegany County Board of Commissioners on Thursday approved three road and bridge projects totaling more than $1.3 million that will be funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Steve Young, director of the Department of Public Works, said the list of potential projects was limited by the federal government’s strict timelines that required the list to be finalized by Wednesday.

The county has until Aug. 17 to submit specifications and plans for all three projects.

“I think they’re all doable,” Young told the commissioners.

Only county roads with federal highway designations and bridges are eligible, Young said during the commissioners’ public work session.

The most costly of the three eligible projects is the milling and repaving of the 3.2-mile long Cash Valley Road from National Highway to state Route 36 in Corriganville at $755,886. Young said this project avoided environmental issues by replacing what’s already there.

The review process, Young said, is already “a very lengthy ordeal.”

The city of Cumberland will continue its work on Maryland Avenue with $498,000 in federal stimulus money.

Another $130,000 is to be spent on repairing the New Hope Road bridge in Frostburg that supports a portion of the Great Allegheny Passage biking and hiking trail.

“We’re having problems with pieces of concrete falling,” Young said.

The county divided up the money about two-thirds to itself and one-third to municipalities because those entities, respectively, own a similar share of roadways within Allegany County.

Young said other projects in Cumberland and Barton weren’t eligible.

Commissioner Dale Lewis asked if the projects would be started this year. Young said that’s possible, although the one most likely to be delayed until early 2010 is the Cash Valley Road milling and repaving project.

For the others, “it depends on how long the reviews take,” Young said.

The state Department of the Environment is tasked with overseeing the plans for projects statewide. Feedback from the agency could be delayed due to the volume of projects being submitted, Young said.

Contact Kevin Spradlin at kspradlin@times-news.com.