Putnam County to use Community Crossing Grant funds for paving

Putnam County is again the recipient of Community Crossing Matching Grant funds from the Indiana Department of Transportation. 

The county received over $1.4 million, which will go towards paving, according to county highway engineer Jim Peck. 

"Putnam County has been fortunate to be awarded Community Crossing Matching Grant funds every year since the program inception back in 2016. The program has evolved from INDOT arbitrary providing funding dollars for projects, to 75/25 or 50/50 funding depending on the size of a municipality, to now a maximum funding match from $1 million to $1.5 million," Peck said. 

In 2016, Putnam County was able to pave about 14 miles of roads with INDOT funding, Peck said. 

"Over time, the cost of paving has increased to a point where last year, the county was only able to pave nine miles of roads. The increase in INDOT Community Crossing Matching Grants maximum match has allowed the county to pave 14 miles of roads this year," Peck said. 

Roads in Monroe, Washington, Franklin and Floyd townships will be paved. 

And, it will happen with a change in methods when it comes to paving, according to Peck. 

"This year, the county highway department has changed its method of paving roads from asphalt milling with a double chip/seal to hot asphalt mix. The main reason is the county can no longer obtain asphalt millings from INDOT projects. Paving with hot asphalt mix not only provides a better road surface, but also has a longer life cycle. The increased cost of asphalt milling makes the use of hot asphalt mix more cost effective and save time to pave roads. The paving operation efficiency allows the county to pave more roads," Peck said.