Jerome, Idaho (KMVT-TV) The best thing about any kind of road work is when it's over, and you have a smooth new road to drive on. The city of Jerome is in for plenty of road construction this summer, and teamwork made these new projects possible.

If you've driven on 100 South Road near Jerome, you know it's been needing some repairs for a long time now. The good news is that the Jerome Urban Renewal Agency has given the City of Jerome a million dollars to rebuild this road.

Walt Appell, Jerome Public Works Directory, says "Pretty much east of the LDS Church up to the intersection of Tiger Drive and Nez Perce, so that's the portion of the road that we're concentrating on the east side."

Road work has already started on West Nez Perce between Victory Lane and the railroad tracks west of the Jerome Cheese Plant. Workers also plan to rebuild the intersection of Lincoln Street and Nez Perce Avenue or 100 South Road with concrete this summer.

Micah Austin, Adminstrator for the Jerome Urban Renewal Agency, says, "It prepares the road for heavy truck traffic. This road gets quite a bit of it. And with the gravity sewer line we're putting in, it opens up all of the vacant lots on the east side of Nez Perce here for future development, without having to go to the expense in their own sewer line."

Austin says the one million dollars that the Jerome Urban Renewal Agency is providing for this project will make these lots shovel-ready for development. Another 650,000 will rebuild the intersection at 100 East and 200 South, or Tiger Drive and Yakima Avenue East.

Appell says, "If there's any way they can get around all the signage and stuff, and allow more time for travel, it'll be great."

This summer's road work projects in Jerome should be completed and ready for drivers to use by sometime in September.

June 19, 2012.