An asphalt problem has forced paving contractors to hit the brakes on finishing the road through the Knox Industrial Park. Last summer 300 East/Klockner Drive was widened to accommodate truck traffic. Contractors have been working for the past few months to restore driveways and lawns and finish paving.
Starke County Economic Development Foundation Executive Director Charlie Weaver says INDOT encountered a problem somewhere in the state with its traditional asphalt mix. Until state officials sort it out, the final pavement cannot be applied to the road surface. Weaver says the road will be paved as soon as local officials get the green light from INDOT.
Weaver says the county recently got good news regarding a second project designed to improve access to the industrial park. U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration has accepted the work and the documentation for the reconstruction of the intersection of State Road 8 with County Road 300 East. EDA picked up 50-percent of the tab for the project. Money from the Starke County Economic Developing Income Tax was used for 3/8ths of the project, and the Starke County Economic Development Foundation picked up the tab for the remaining 1/8th.
“The project came in well under budget and ahead of time which will bode well the next we apply for funding to EDA,” Weaver said. The Kankakee-Iroquois Regional Planning Commission was the grant administrator for the project.
