Holcomb Announces $150 Million In Local Road Funding Grants

Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Wednesday road funding grants that total $150 million for local governments across the state.

The General Assembly created the Community Crossings grants in 2016 to help local road funding efforts. Counties and cities would put up half the money for a project – the state would match that amount.

The program’s second year will send $150 million to almost 400 county and local governments statewide. Applications for the grants increased 48 percent this year.

Bicknell Mayor Thomas Estabrook’s community of around 3,000 people received $88,000 in 2016’s program, which he called a transformative opportunity.

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“Which, for a community this size, is really off the chart. The only time that we are able to get involved with a project of that scope, with that kind of money, is if it’s usually federally funded,” Estabrook said.

A change to the program this year allowed small communities like Estabrook’s to only put up 25 percent of a project’s cost. Bicknell will now receive more than $400,000 this year.