Lake County awarded state grant for bridge project

Lake County has been awarded one of the state Transportation Department’s Preliminary Engineering Bridge Improvement Grants for a bridge project.  Lake County’s grant is one of thirty-three grants totaling more than one-point-four-million dollars that were awarded at the state Transportation Commission’s meeting on Thursday.

Other counties in the area receiving the Bridge Improvement Grants are:  Brookings County, who is receiving grant money for four bridges, and Minnehaha County, who is receiving grant money for two bridge projects. 

The state DOT received 39 applications for the grant funds.  

Local governments are required to pay a minimum of 20-percent matching funds and have three years to expend the grant. Counties must have a wheel tax and a five-year Highway and Bridge Improvement Plan to receive a grant.

The BIG program was created in 2015 and sets aside seven million dollars per year from funds generated by license plate fees to be used to repair and replace aging local bridges. The state DOT adds an additional eight-million dollars annually, making fifteen million dollars available.  

Applications for the next round of the grant program are due January 2nd of 2022 for the Preservation and Replacement categories.

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Grant recipients are:  Aurora County (3), Beadle County (2), city of Blunt, city of Box Elder, Brookings County (4), Butte County (2), Charles Mix County, Codington County, Davison County (3), Grant County (2), Hamlin County, Hanson County (2), Lake County, Minnehaha County (2), city of Rapid City, Roberts County, Sully County, and Union County (4).