Contracts have been awarded for two Hall County road projects being funded with federal stimulus money.

Work could begin in August on resurfacing U.S. 129 from Gillsville Highway to Monroe Drive and Mount Vernon Road from Thompson Bridge Road to Dahlonega Highway, said Teri Pope, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Department of Transportation.

The two Hall projects are expected to cost nearly $2.4 million. C.W. Matthews Contracting of Marietta will handle both projects.

“Usually, it takes six to eight weeks for the contractor to finalize their paperwork for us, and then they present it to us for review,” Pope said Monday.

When work gets rolling, motorists can expect lane closings.

“Those details come in the plans the contractor will prepare for us,” Pope said. “We don’t know that yet.”

The completion date for the projects is April 30.

A third Hall project has been approved for stimulus funding — the resurfacing of Ga. 365 from Jesse Jewell Parkway to Lula Road — but hasn’t been awarded.

“It is still in the works, but (it is) not as far along as these that were awarded to contractors on Friday,” Pope said.

The DOT also awarded a project in Walker County.

“North Georgia, particularly the northwest portion of the state, has been especially hard hit by the
economic downtown,” said Steve Farrow, who represents the 9th district, including Hall County, on the state transportation board.

“This work will create much-needed new jobs and, at the same time, put fresh money into the region’s economy and help us repair and maintain our transportation infrastructure.”

The three 9th District projects are among 36 awarded Friday throughout Georgia with a total price tag of $50 million.

Another 41 projects estimated to cost $138 million are expected to be awarded in late June.

By December, the DOT board is expected to select projects for another $340 million-plus phase.

“Our goal throughout this process has been to carefully evaluate and select those most-needed projects throughout Georgia and then award projects that will create and sustain as many jobs in as many parts of the state as possible,” said DOT Commissioner Gerald Ross.