Bluff Road BUILD Grant Application

Summary

Kaskaskia Engineering Group, LLC (KEG) prepared a Department of Transportation Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant application for Monroe County, Illinois. The BUILD program enables the Department of Transportation to use a rigorous merit-based process to select projects with exceptional benefits, explore ways to deliver projects faster and save on construction costs and make needed investments in our Nation’s infrastructure.

Project

The Monroe County BUILD grant application detailed a request for $3.1 million for the realignment of Bluff Road approximately 9 feet above grade for 1.5 miles, between Hanover Road and HH Road, in rural Monroe County. The proposed realignment would improve safety for vehicular travelers, reduce maintenance costs for the roadway, provide a critical link in the efficient movement of goods and services, and improve the region’s quality of life and environmental sustainability.

KEG was tasked with completing the BUILD grant application, a benefit-cost analysis for the project, the BUILD grant project information form, obtaining letters of support from local stakeholders (e.g. government agencies and officials), and subsequently, submitting all the application documentation by the BUILD grant deadline (May 18, 2020) via the Grants.gov website. A fundamental task of the project was the completion of the BUILD grant application, which included a detailed analysis of how the project was established and measured against the BUILD grant primary and secondary selection criteria.