State grants will fund work on airport, Johnson roads

Whitman County has been named for two grants from the Washington State County Road Administration (CRAB) board.

The first is $470,000-$480,000 for two miles of asphalt overlay of the Johnson Cut-Off Road and Johnson Road, and a small piece of Becker Road at Johnson.

The second is the first $420,000 of a $3.5 million project to expand three miles of Pullman Airport Road to make it a three-lane road with a turn lane. It will extend from Orville Boyd Road at the east end of the Airport to Highway 270 near the Idaho State Line.

“In essence, that’s a three-and-a-half million dollar project we were just awarded,” said Mark Storey, Whitman County public works director.

The rest of the money will automatically be granted in the next biennium (2021-23). According to CRAB board rules, projects partially funded in one biennium are first on the list in the next biennium for the rest of the funding.

Whitman County had applied for the Pullman Airport Road money in four bienniums before getting the nod.

Construction on both the Johnson work and Pullman Airport Road are estimated for 2023-24.

Storey is a board member for CRAB.