Bartholomew County and surrounding counties are among 218 recipients chosen to share more than $100 million in the latest round of Community Crossings grants.
Awarded twice a year through the Indiana Department of Transportation, the Community Crossings grant program will match up to $1 million annually for each unit of government, if those localities are also willing to invest their own money in road and bridge repairs.
The four grants awarded to localities in Bartholomew County total more than $1.94 million.
Columbus
The $689,351 awarded to the city of Columbus is earmarked for roughly six projects. Two are located in industrial areas north of the city, while the others include segments of two streets in the community’s historic section, Executive Director of Public Works and City Engineer Dave Hayward said.
Projects include an upgrade of Lowell Road, from Old Indianapolis Road to Long Road, Hayward said. The city had earlier requested money to improve a separate section of Lowell, but that proposal was denied at the state level, he said. Just north of Lowell is a section of Industrial Road that will be upgraded.
In addition, a portion of the grant will help pay the costs of upgrading one section of Eighth Street, as well as three different sections of 10th Street, Hayward said.
Bartholomew County
Bartholomew County will receive $990,928, according to the grant.
If the matching grant had not been awarded, the county’s annual overlay program would have been reduced to about 11 miles this year, county highway engineer Danny Hollander said.
But the awarding of the Community Crossings grant means at least 22 miles of rural roads will get a new blacktop this year, Hollander said. That is an increase from the 18.27 miles of overlay work that was announced at this time last year.
Grants awarded to Columbus and Bartholomew County must be matched on a 50-50 basis.
Clifford
For the second time in more than 40 years, all of the streets in Clifford will receive a fresh coat of asphalt, thanks to the $182,372 grant.
Originally, the town was only seeking funds to fix up Washington and East Sugar streets, Clifford town leader Danny James said. But at Hollander’s encouragement, the town applied for the larger Community Crossings grant to get all of their streets repaved, James said.
Because Clifford only had 276 residents, the town will only have to match 25% of the grant amount, James said.
Elizabethtown
Elizabethtown (population 538), received $77,373 through the Community Crossings program.
The Sandcreek Township community will spend its funds on replacing collapsed culverts along a four-block area of High Street, Clerk-Treasurer Shirley Nugent said. In addition, new drainage will be installed, followed by a fresh coat of asphalt. The work area on High Street is from Second Street to where High Street ends on the west side, according to a project description.
Last year, Elizabethtown was able to obtain fund that allowed them to make improvements on 10 of their streets, Nugent said.
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Community Crossings grants for Bartholomew and surrounding counties:
- Bartholomew County: $990,928.50
- Columbus: $689,351.25
- Clifford: $182,372. 25
- Elizabethtown: $77,929.25
- Franklin $1,000,000
- Greensburg: $75,373.15
- Jackson County: $1,000,000
- Jennings County: $1,000,000
- Nashville: $200,745
- Seymour: $108,200.18
- Shelby County: $824,573.62
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