By Don Rush

Last month, the Oakland County Board of Commissioners adopted a series of resolutions that secure funding to complete nearly $12 million in new local road projects. Oakland County’s annual Local Road Improvement Program (LRIP) provides funding to Oakland County cities and villages for repairs and improvements on roadways under their jurisdiction.

Locally, the villages of Leonard and Oxford will get a combined county contribution of $16,102 for two projects. In Leonard, the county will contribute $3,194 for shoulder rehabilitation on Forest and

Elmwood Streets downtown. The total cost of the project is estimated at $6,388. In Oxford Village the county will throw in $12,908 to help cover the cost of resurfacing Hudson and Dennison streets. The total cost of that project is estimated at $652,835.

When asked about the program, Leonard Village President Mike McDonald said, “For the past several years they (the county board of commissioners) have set aside money to help downtown areas in commercial areas improve access and safety to encourage economic development and sustainability. In the Village of Leonard we generally use the money to improve the streets with better structure and clear adjacent streets of brush and narrow shoulders that inhibit safe, two way traffic for motorists and commercial vehicles. The amount of money the Village receives is budgeted particularly for this program in our contributions from our general fund to local roads.

“For your information, the money does not go very far particularly in today’s economy and with the fuel prices for diesel so high it has increased the cost of both material and equipment to perform the work. The local road improvement program is positive in its effects on the local community and shows the concern the county commission has about communities across the county.”

The program makes county investments in local roads, which is then matched with funding from Oakland County communities.

According to McDonald, Leonard does the work, pays for it and they send a “letter of completion” to the county for a reimbursement of their allocated funds.

“The original money for this particular program comes from our General fund and expensed out of our road budget,” McDonald said. “The county does not allow the money to be used for routine maintenance or any unapproved use, which is why you have to apply with your project description and wait for approval before performing the work.”

For 2022, the county board appropriated nearly $2 million in county funds to make sure these projects

happen this year.

“Roads continue to be a problem for everyone across the state and Oakland County,” Commissioner

Michael Spisz (R-Oxford) said. “This program is a great way for Oakland County and our communities to work together to improve local infrastructure for our residents.”