HOPE – After several months of discussion, the Hope Town Council has given final approval to specific street improvements they wish to make next year.
With a combined total of $149,457, the list of projects must be turned into the Indiana Department of Transportation for consideration in the second round of the 2024 Community Crossings Matching Grant (CCMG) program.
Since the northeast Bartholomew County community has only 2,100 residents, town manager Jason Eckart says municipal government has considerably less money than counties or cities to match grants. For that reason, towns such as Hope with fewer than 10,000 residents only have to match 25% of the grant, according to the CCMG website.
In addition, the town council caps its annual requests to this program at $150,000, Eckart said.
All paperwork must be submitted no later than July 31. Eckart says he’s optimistic that he’ll be notified of INDOT’s decision no later than October.
On Tuesday, the council voted to upgrade both Jackson and Washington streets, from State Road 9 (Main Street) to Harrison Street. These one-block sections essentially make up the north and south side of the Hope Town Square, which Eckart describes as the town’s “crowning jewel.”
But rather than new asphalt, Eckart says those two sections will only received a new seal coat to provide additional protection during the cold weather season. The town manager says it’s the same treatment that has been given to several streets in Hope this summer.
After Jackson and Washington streets receive their new seal coat, they will also receive new markings to designate parking spaces and lane separations, he added.
The only section of street that will actually be milled down and resurfaced will be West Jackson, from Main Street to the Haw Creek river bridge, Eckart said.
While the town council has given its blessing to the list, all projects are still subject to approval from the Indiana Department of Transportation.
“I feel we have as good of a chance of getting the grant as we have in the past,” Eckart said. “Ever since we started to apply for the CCMG, we have received some amount of funding from the state.”
Without the state matching grant program, the town manager said Hope would likely be about 20 years behind in the upkeep of streets.
While construction could get underway next spring, Eckart said it’s more likely to begin in the summer.
