Gov. Ivey awards $18.7 million for infrastructure improvements

Gov. Kay Ivey has awarded $18.7 million in grants for improvements in 58 Alabama communities. The funds from the Community Development Block Grant program will enable communities to provide water, improve roads and sewage systems, construct public community buildings and remove blight.

“Community Development Block Grants are vital to Alabama communities wanting to raise living standards and improve living conditions for their residents,” Ivey said. “I am pleased to award these grants, and I commend all those local leaders who, by seeking these grants, show they have their communities at heart.”

The competitive grants are awarded annually in several categories including county, large city, small city and community enhancement. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants from funds made available by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“As a former mayor, I know how valuable these grants are to communities and I also realize the time and effort that local leaders, planners and residents invest in obtaining funding,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “ADECA is pleased to have a role in this process that will benefit communities all across Alabama.”

Road and bridge grants awarded and projects include:

North Alabama

• Hackleburg – $85,000 to provide improvements along four streets, including widening and paving or sealing.

North Central Alabama

• Ashland– $350,000 to provide road and drainage improvements and water upgrades.
• Blount County – $350,000 to improve three roads totaling eight miles north of Blountsville.
• Fayette County – $250,000 to improve water lines and provide road resurfacing in an area west of the town of Belk.

South Central Alabama

• Forkland – $350,000 to upgrade water lines and improve two streets.
• Lanett – $250,000 to complete the final phase of a downtown revitalization project.
• Marengo County – $350,000 to pave five roads.

Southeast Alabama

• Level Plains – $250,000 to provide street and drainage improvements along Faith Street and Phyllis Avenue.
• Opp – $450,000 to provide sewer system line improvements along Dr. Martin Luther King Drive from Cannon Drive to Hardin Street.

Southwest Alabama

• Brewton – $450,000 to renovate or replace dilapidated sewer lines along multiple streets.
• Castleberry – $350,000 to replace aging and undersized water lines and improve streets in various sections of the town.
• Choctaw County – $350,000 to resurface multiple roads in the northeast part of the county.
• Flomaton – $201,115 to resurface several roads within the city to reduce safety hazards.
• Monroeville – $450,000 to replace sewer lines along multiple streets in the west part of the city.
• Pennington – $350,000 to resurface 5.5 miles of road in various locations within the city.
• Silas – $350,000 to improve drainage and resurface streets at several locations within the city.