Edge Road between county highways 166 and 137 in Bear Creek has become so deteriorated that water from a nearby pond is completely overtaking the road.
BEAR CREEK - Optimism among Bear Creek town officials and residents that they would finally receive grant funding to repair or resurface deteriorating roads has turned into major disappointment, with the town declined the funding.
Mayor Rob Taylor and the Bear Creek Town Council discussed this disappointment at their regular meeting Wednesday, Jan. 21, while at the same meeting voting to approve Resolution 2026-1 to apply for Rebuild Alabama transportation funds for the street repairs.
Taylor said the resolution gives the town permission to apply for the annual Rebuild Alabama grant at $350,000 to be used for street maintenance, repair, replacement and construction of roads.
“The Town of Bear Creek will match the grant with $100,000 or as needed,” Taylor said, referring to the resolution.
“We, unfortunately, did not receive the grant we applied for last year,” Taylor informed council members and members of the public in attendance.
“We were hoping to be able to pave just shy of a million dollars worth of roads and city streets,” Taylor pointed out. “This is a step toward basically the same grant for next year. We are going to keep trying.
“We were so, so close this year,” Taylor continued. “After trips to Montgomery and all of the paperwork and stuff we did, we were told basically by NACOLG that we were good and, of course, it didn’t work out that way.”
Taylor was referring to the Northwest Alabama Council of Local Governments, which assisted the town in applying for the funding.
“We are not going to give up. We are going to try again,” Taylor emphasized.
See complete story in the Northwest Alabamian.
Subscribe now!