Phase 2 South Moore road on the burner

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In the Emery County Commission meeting on Feb. 15 the commission approved the ratification of the cooperative agreement with UDOT for Phase 2 of the South Moore cut-off road project. Phase 1 was completed last year and the project widened the road and took out a problematic corner and realigned it. Phase 2 will move to the I-70 side of the project and begin where the road leaves I-70 near Eagle Canyon. The project will continue to approximately where the gypsum mines are located. The engineering on the project is complete and the environmental study is complete and the Bureau of Land Management has granted a right of way for the project. The project is now in the hands of the Utah Department of Transportation.
The project cost is $2,101,000 and the portion Emery County is responsible for is $142,900 which will come from the Emery County Special Service District Number one and the county also approved an agreement with the ECSSD#1 for the funding of the South Moore project Phase 2. After the project is completed it will be turned back over to the county.
Commissioner Ira Hatch reported it would be several years before the entire project is completed and they go back every year to petition to remain on the funding list. The money for the project is federal highway monies appropriated by the joint highway committee of which Rep. Jim Matheson is a member. Matheson has been contacted by Commissioner Gary Kofford and Matheson is favorable to including the project in the funding bill. Hatch reported that the road from U-24, Temple Mountain Road to the Goblin Valley road will be constructed this year.
Engineer for the South Moore Phase 2 project, Craig Johansen said everything is in UDOTs hands now and he expects the bid for the project to be listed between 45-60 days. It is a state job with 93 percent of the money coming from the federal government and 7 percent coming from the county. UDOT will advertise and then award the bid to the low bidder. The South Moore Phase 1 project was completed by Brown Brothers Construction out of Loa. Johansen explained that the Phase 2 project will begin on the south end because they have an agreement with the BLM for the crush material for the barrow area on the road; this pit will need a road to it and this will be accomplished in Phase 2 of the project.