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ALPENA — Most road projects in Northeast Michigan slated for this year are complete or underway despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic, however, prevented officials from scoring the conditions of roads and highways eligible for federal funding.

Alcona, Alpena, and Presque Isle, however, are having their local roads rated and are drafting maintenance plans for the state, which could help the counties acquire future funding for needed projects.

Montmorency County roads officials could not be reached for comment.

In Alpena County, all of the planned 2020 projects, which consisted primarily of sealing, crack-filling and overlay work, have been completed, Alpena County Road Commission Managing Director Ryan Brege said.

He said a two-year reconstruction project on Wolf Creek Road also wrapped up, and, now, officials will focus on a large renovation of the Bagley Street bridge. That project will completely shut the bridge down for one year and cost between $7 million and $8 million.

Brege said the project could begin before winter, weather permitting, or in the early spring.

Presque Isle County’s local roads were scored this summer for the first time in four years, and county Road Commission Managing Director Jerry Smolinski said the overall score average is about four, on a scale from one to 10 on which lower scores mean poorer road conditions.

He said some new roads were scored as high as an eight, and others were scored ones.

Smolinski said that, normally, the local roads are graded every three years, but they were delayed an additional year this cycle for fiscal reasons.

He said road scores typically drop at least an entire point if maintenance isn’t done over the course of the three years, so, with an additional year between inspections, the overall score is lower than the last time it was done.

Smolinski said the roads in the poorest shape are located in small townships that have little funding to pay their 65% share of costs, while the better streets are in townships that have property tax funds dedicated to improving roads.

“The good and bad roads are scattered in the townships,” he said. “Belknap, Pulaski, and Rogers townships have millages, and Posen Township is voting on one in November. The other ones can’t afford it, and it really isn’t their fault, because they have lost revenue sharing over the years, but it does show in the road conditions.”

Smolinski said the county did or is finishing all of the work it had slated for this summer, although it did have to delay some purchases to do so. He said the department had to delay buying a used excavator and pick-up truck to ensure the roads were addressed first.

Alcona County is in the process of having its local roads scored for the first time in many years, Road Commission Managing Director Jesse Campbell said. He said it is also working on an updated asset management plan to submit to the state, with the help of the Northeast Michigan Council of Governments.

Campbell said all but one township in the county have millages for roads, and that funds a lot of work. He said the roads rate in the four-to-five range, and, if the area has a harsh winter, it could cause significant deterioration.

“If we get freezing rain and below-zero temperatures, we could see some roads fall to an unrepairable rating,” Campbell said. “We are doing our best to stay out in front of further deterioration and help the townships as much as we can, but, right now, it feels like we are fighting a losing battle, sometimes.”

Unlike the other counties, some seal coat projects in Alcona County won’t be complete this year because of the fallout from the pandemic. Campbell said there are about 16 sections of roads that will need to wait until next year.

“I just hope they don’t get much worse until then,” he said.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.