District One of Bryan County is conducting 10 road projects that have already begun or that will begin soon and reach completion by the end of 2009, according to an official.

Monty Montgomery, county commissioner of District No. 1, said the projects include the building of new roads and major upgrades for some existing roads, with a total estimated cost of more than $7 million.

“Obviously the county couldn’t build a million dollar road. We don’t have a million dollars in our budget for the whole year,” Montgomery said. “The way we’re able to do this is through partnerships, ... using city funds, county funds, state funds, federal funds and tribal funds. [These projects were made possible] by everyone being able to ... pool their resources together.”

FOLSOM ROAD

Work has already begun on a one-mile stretch on Folsom Road, located northwest of Durant from 49th Avenue to Wilson Road. The $250,000 project was funded by a Rural Economic Action Program grant and private donations.

ORCHARD ROAD

One and three-quarter miles of Orchard Road, located north of Calera and west of Highway 69/75, will also be experiencing upgrades.

The $1,548,798.72 project is funded 100 percent by the Bureau of Indian Affairs at the request of Choctaw Nation. The contract has been awarded to Cummings Construction.

Montgomery explained that the more expensive cost of the Orchard Road project is the result of using federal funds, which are accompanied with restrictions, such as how the road is built, what materials are used and how wide the road must be, which drive up expenses.

“But as long as we’re using [the federal government’s] money, we have to build the road how they want it built,” Montgomery said.

SILO

Silo will see work performed on four roads inside the town limits in January 2009. Oak Street, Hickory Street, E 4th Street and W 6th Street will be upgraded at a total estimated cost of $200,000, funded by a Community Development Block Grant and county funds.

The funding Bryan County provides will be paying the employees, furnishing the equipment and paying for fuel. The grant will pay for the materials.

SAWMILL ROAD RAILROAD CROSSING

Work on the Sawmill Road railroad crossing, located a quarter mile south of Armstrong on Sawmill Road will begin in spring of 2009. The project at a cost of $345,285, has been funded 100 percent by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the money has already been placed into Bryan County’s account.

SAWMILL ROAD

Work for a two mile stretch north of Highway 70 east of Durant, extending to Armstrong on Sawmill Road, will begin in the summer of 2009. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is funding 100 percent of the anticipated $1,562,000 cost, with the Choctaw Nation having requested the funds. Currently, Bryan County is in the process of moving utility poles to begin the project next year.

OAK HILLS ROAD

New road construction will begin in late spring of 2009 on Oak Hills Road, located in Cartwright. The $200,000 project will be funded by state and county funds.

“It’s a project that became a necessity as a result of the flooding in 2007,” Montgomery said. “Currently, there’s only one road in and one road out to the whole Oak Hills addition there, and when the lake floods, they have no way in and no way out to that area.”

MOCKINGBIRD LANE

A two mile stretch on Mockingbird Lane, northwest of Durant extending from Wilson Street to Silo Road, will be resurfaced in a chip and seal project. The $150,000 project will be funded by the county and work will begin in early summer of 2009.

PLATTER ROAD

On Platter Road, from U.S. Highway 69/75 west into Platter and south through Platter to Vernon Road, a seven mile stretch will be worked on in fall of 2009. The $250,000 project will be funded by a combination of funds from the Chickasaw Nation, a Community Development Block Grand and county funds. Platter Road has not been resurfaced in 20 years, Montgomery said.

CALE SWITCH ROAD

After the Orchard Road project is completed, work will begin, most likely in early July of 2009, on a one mile stretch of Cale Switch Road from Choctaw Road north to Orchard Road. It is a joint road project between the city of Durant, Bryan County and the Choctaw Nation, Montgomery said. Currently, a cost estimate for the project is not available yet.

LEAVENWORTH TRAIL

Work will begin on a two-mile stretch from Highway 70 west of Durant for two miles south in early spring of 2009. The $1,851,228.12 project will be funded by a federal grant and state funds and has already been bid. The construction contract has been awarded to Overland Construction Company. Montgomery said he has applied for a federal grant for the Leavenworth Trail road project in 2012. He said Durant is number one on the list to receive the grant. If Durant is approved for the funding in 2012, the grant will allow an additional three miles to be completed on the Leavenworth Trail project.

Montgomery said citizens often ask him after a certain stretch of road has been fixed why another stretch of road couldn’t have been fixed instead.

“People will say, ‘Why not this two miles or that two miles?’ and the only answer that I can come up with is we’ve got to start somewhere,” Montgomery said.

Montgomery said within the next five years, the whole stretch of the Leavenworth Trail project project from Highway 70 to Highway 69/75 will be completed, explaining the county couldn’t complete the entire project at once because it would be too expensive to do so.

“A combination of all these roads, we’re looking at many thousands of people who will benefit from them,” Montgomery said. “We’re trying our best to start where we feel the roads are the worst and need it the most and go from there. We want to help as many citizens as quickly as we can by completing these road projects.”