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For those who travel along Belleville Avenue in Brewton, may want to send a word of thanks to Governor Kay Ivey following an announcement made today (Wednesday).

Governor Kay Ivey today announced that more than $5.1 million in state funding is being awarded to cities and counties for various road and bridge projects.

The amount pledged for the resurfacing of Belleville Avenue from Rankin Street to U.S. 31 comes in at a quarter of a million dollars ($250,000), according to a release from the governor’s office. The matching funds from the city include $ 72,117.50  bringing the total cost of the project to $ 322,117.50.

The funding is made available through the Annual Grant Program, a program created under the Rebuild Alabama Act. The Rebuild Alabama Act, overwhelmingly passed by the Legislature and signed by Governor Ivey in 2019, requires the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) to establish an annual program setting aside $10 million off the top of the state’s share of new gas tax revenue for local projects.

“Just recently, we marked the fourth anniversary of Rebuild Alabama, and it has continued to show it produces nothing less than real, tangible results. With this grant, 21 new projects will be underway and under development, ready to benefits folks in all corners of the state,” said Governor Ivey. “I’m proud of Rebuild Alabama’s success, and I look forward to seeing it improve such critical infrastructure. Alabama’s roads and bridges are making substantial progress, and we look forward to this continuing.”

In Conecuh County, Castleberry residents will also see some improvements. The Governor announced another quarter of a million dollars ($250,000) in funding to resurface Carter Street, Skinner Street, James Stree/Price Street, Ridge Road and Baird Streets in the area. No matching funds were noted for the project.

Of the awarded projects, cities and counties also contributed a total of over $2.9 million in local matching funds. Matching funds are not required to be eligible. It is anticipated that a number of projects will be under contract by the end of this year. All projects are required to move forward within one year of the awarding of funds.

With this round of funding, more than $145 million in state transportation has been awarded through the local grant programs created by the Rebuild Alabama Act. Projects have been awarded in all 67 counties.