The state of Michigan will receive approximately $850 million as part of the stimulus program to fix roadways.

Managing director of the Isabella County Road Commission, Tony Casali, said he estimates Isabella County will receive roughly $500,000 from the stimulus program.

“The state as a whole will receive about $850 million to fix the roads, and the Michigan Department of Transportation will get 75 percent of that, leaving Isabella County with about $500,000,” Casali said.

However, he said one full reconstruction costs just that, so the stimulus money will not do anything for the magnitude of roadways in Isabella County.

“Isabella County has about 1,200 miles of roadway, and probably about one mile of that will get fixed with the stimulus budget,” Casali said.

There is a certain criteria required for the stimulus program, according to Casali, that each county must have a design of what project they want to work on with a blueprint.

They must also be ready to be bid on by contractors. Casali said Isabella County has a design for Winn Road from Blanchard to M20.

“The stimulus program bang isn’t going to be as big as everything thinks it is, unfortunately,” Casali said.

Isabella County plans to work on this project for the next four years.

Oakland County Public Information Officer for the Road Commission of Oakland County, Craig Bryson, says he estimates about $26.6 million in stimulus for Oakland County.

“The money given to Oakland County will be distributed between all the cities and villages in Oakland County, including the Road Commission,” Bryson said.

The Oakland County Federal Aid Task Force decides how the stimulus budget gets split up. “We’re fairly restricted in what we can do, so we’ll do some major resurfacing as opposed to road widening,” Bryson said. “We’ll probably have about four to six major resurfacing projects, depending on how much money we end up getting,”

Bryson also said the stimulus money will not be the solution to all Michigan road problems.

“This will put a tiny dent in our backlog, it won’t allow us to recoup from the winter budget from plowing and salting-we can only do what is approved,” he said.

Saginaw County Road Commission Managing Director Brian Wendling, said he is not sure what projects Saginaw County will take on, because he is not sure how much money the county will receive from the stimulus program. “We will probably use it for a mix of reconstruction and general maintenance,” Wendling said.

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E-mail the author: Vanessa Fayz