SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (KGUN) — Congress has less than 30 days to pass the federal budget, and city’s that can receive federal funding, like Sierra Vista, want it passed as soon as possible so they can move forward with capital projects.
Last year the City of Sierra Vista received $3.7 million for their Buffalo Soldier Trail reconstruction project. This year they will receive $7 million, when Congress passes the federal budget his year.
“This is our money coming back home,” said Congressman Juan Ciscomani.
The congressman worked with City of Sierra Vista officials to help secure the federal funds. In two years Sierra Vista will have received over $10 million in federal funding to the area for this project.
“To bring our tax dollars back to work here in our own community is huge for me," Capital Improvement Payouts and Development Manager for the City of Sierra Vista, Irene Zuniga, said. "I mean, this is what I worked for. I want to see our tax dollars being used here.”
The money covers the cost of the first two phases of the reconstruction project. There are six total phases, that consist of 3,000 feet of road that need to be redone.
"Where the majority of deterioration that we're seeing is where the majority of the traffic is,” Zuniga said.
The reconstruction will fix roughly three miles of the road— from 7th Street to Hatfield Road.
"This is a main artery through town,” Zuniga said.
The current plans include removing the asphalt and repaving the road, but the city says they won’t know the scope of the projects until the designs are done. There is a possibility some parts of the road will only need an overlay.
"In the last 20 (to) 30, years, we just haven't had the money to be able to maintain this roadway,” Zuniga said.
She says the city has applied for grants to help fund the project but they haven't ever received them. The total cost, is over $29 million, which is why the city created phases for the project. The city is contributing some of it's local funds to the project, but so far the federal money has covered most of the project.
“This is, this is the greatest feeling," Zuniga said about being able to move forward with the reconstruction. "It's almost like hitting the lottery.”
Assistant City Manager, Victoria Yarbrough, says the federal money is freeing up local tax dollars to pay for other things the city needs.
"We needed to buy five police vehicles that are pursuit rated. They're $105,000 a piece," she said. "So (funds are) getting stretched thin. So it really helps us to (have this federal money) to be able to fund a project like this.”
The city received the $3.7 million earlier, which allowed them to move forward with phase one. They are now working with the state on designs.
“One of the major changes in this last year has been the cost of materials," Zuniga said. "The more we wait, the more expensive these projects will become.”
Which is why the city and Congressman Ciscomani want the federal budget to pass quickly, and not extend past this year. Congress is back in session soon, and has a Sept. 30 deadline to pass the budget— and avoid a government shutdown,
“The sooner we can get this tackled, the more we'll be able to benefit from from this money that we've been that we've been granted,” Zuniga said.
She says if the $7 million gets approved this year, they could combine phase one and two.
“Ideally you would want to combine (phase one and two) together and construct them at the same time, so you inconvenience everyone at the same time, and that minimizes the headaches and the delays,” Zuniga said.
She says the design could take a year to complete, with construction taking another year to be finished.
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Alexis Ramanjulu is a reporter in Cochise County for KGUN 9. She began her journalism career reporting for the Herald/Review in Sierra Vista, which she also calls home. Share your story ideas with Alexis by emailing alexis.ramanjulu@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook.
