Lincoln County supervisors ratcheted up their plans forrepairing Industrial Park Road Monday, agreeing to raid their owndistrict road and bridge funds to pay for a quick fix project forthe crumbling city street.

The five supervisors will contribute $1,000 each from theirdistrict funds to allow county engineering firm Dungan Engineering,PA, to carry out a limited smoothing project to themost-deteriorated portions of the road between North Jackson Streetand the Cliff Givens Bridge. Supervisors are hoping Brookhavenaldermen will match their contribution to repair the road, whichserves the heart of the city’s industrial community.

“It’s a city road, a county road – we’re all tied in together,”said Brookhaven Mayor Les Bumgarner following Monday’s county boardaction.

The mayor plans to ask the city board for a matching $5,000contribution during Tuesday night’s meeting.

“It’s important to the success of Brookhaven,” Bumgarner said.”A lot of the damage is being done by the trucks that go out there.We feel somewhat responsible for it, and it’s always good to worktogether.”

The leveling job is intended to stop the badly battered roadfrom rutting further until a $500,000 repair project gets under wayin spring 2010. Supervisors have given the sinking stretch theirfull attention, voting Monday to scrap existing plans for repairingZetus Road to ensure the remainder of their federal SurfaceTransportation Funds are applied to Industrial Park Road.

The vote was 3-1, with board president the Rev. Jerry Wilsonabsent and District Five Supervisor Gary Walker voting against thereordering of priorities. Walker has spent much time and resourcespreparing work for Zetus Road, but the board believes IndustrialPark Road to be the more pressing project, due to its importance tolarge employers like McLane Southern and the Wal-Mart DistributionCenter.

Dungan Engineering, PA, Principal Jeff Dungan said the Office ofState Aid Road Construction required the Zetus Road project’scancellation in order to move the IPR repairs up the list. Withoutcanceling the Zetus project, Dungan said the county could affordonly minimal patching to IPR while waiting for STP funds to buildup, which could take two or three years.

Walker’s objection wasn’t the only one. District ThreeSupervisor Nolan Williamson initially opposed the contribution of$2,000 for the IPR quick fix, agreeing only after the total washalved. With oil companies’ heavy trucks and equipment using roadslike Pricedale Drive, District Three has plenty of repair needs ofits own, he said.

“I could put everybody’s budget on one road and still notmaintain it because of those trucks,” Williamson said. “If youdon’t do anything to the base (of IPR), this is just putting aBand-Aid on it. It will be wallered back out in six months.”