The Indiana Department of Transportation has awarded $3.5 million to Seymour to reconstruct a portion of South O’Brien Street.

City officials learned of the news earlier this week.

The funding will be used for the stretch of road from the new Burkart Bypass South roundabout north to Village Circle Avenue.

Improvements will include widening of the road, drainage, curbs and gutters, sidewalks and pavement markings, said city Engineer Bernie Hauersperger.

The total cost of the project is $5.3 million with $2 million coming from the Seymour Redevelopment Commission.

This is the first of five phases, and construction is slated to begin in 2027.

Seymour now has close to $8 million in federal funding for the reconstruction of the entire O’Brien Street corridor, which will cost in excess of $16 million.

Phases 2 and 3 from Village Circle Avenue north to Fourth Street received $4 million in federal funding in 2020 and will begin in 2025. Phases 4 and 5, which have not yet received funding, take the project from Fourth Street north to Burkart Boulevard.

The road will be completely torn out and rebuilt with the addition of storm sewers, curbs and gutters, bike lanes and sidewalks.

“This area has been identified for years as a trouble spot in need of help with drainage and safety,” Mayor Matt Nicholson said of O’Brien Street. “The road is falling apart, and there are no sidewalks. It’s a heavily trafficked area by pedestrians.”

Public information meetings and public hearings will be scheduled in the future to allow for questions and public comment.