Sumner County moves to apply for SS4V roadway and safety grant with $95,000 local match

Sumner County commissioners voted May 5 to allow county highway staff to apply for a U.S. Department of Transportation-funded SS4V grant that would fund a roadway asset-management system and a comprehensive safety action plan.

The application the highway department proposed would seek roughly $475,000 in grant funding, an 80/20 split that would require the county to provide about $95,000 if the grant is awarded, Highway Department representative Mister Ellis said. “What I’m asking for is like 475,000,” Ellis said during the meeting. He added that grant awards can be as large as $5,000,000 for jurisdictions that choose larger projects.

The nut of the request is two linked projects: a comprehensive safety action plan (estimated at about $175,000) that would gather EMS, emergency management, schools and law enforcement to identify safety priorities, and a roadway inspection and rating system (about $300,000) that would catalog roughly 800 miles of county roads, generate condition ratings and support future grant applications. Ellis said the roadway system “downloads all the information, the signage, the roadway conditions” and provides an interactive, color-coded database.

Commissioners pressed staff for more detail on recurring costs, vendor selection and bidding. Commissioners asked how often the roadway data would be refreshed and what the anticipated annual maintenance or software subscription costs would be; Ellis estimated recurring service “probably in the $10,000 to $15,000 range” but said the figure could be lower or higher depending on usage, and that he would obtain a firmer written estimate. Commissioners also asked whether the county would be required to contract exclusively with the engineering firm mentioned in the presentation; Ellis said the firm doing initial work would be the one helping assemble the grant and that grant-driven arrangements often lead to that firm leading implementation, but he agreed to get legal and procurement clarification.

Several commissioners voiced support for applying but emphasized that application does not commit the county to the local match until the grant is awarded and the board approves budgetary commitments. The board’s procedural discussion clarified that the application step merely permits staff to submit paperwork; any acceptance of funds that requires local matching dollars would return to budget and committee review before county spending.

Commissioners also discussed coordination with nearby municipalities, including Gallatin and GNRC (Greater Nashville Regional Council). Ellis said the county has talked with city counterparts about possible shared use of the system but that the county must apply first. The presentation noted grant application timelines; commissioners and staff referenced deadlines that include grant goals due in early June and other program deadlines later in the month.

The commission approved proceeding with the application after discussion; several members asked staff to return with written cost estimates, procurement/legal guidance and a presentation to the highway committee or budget committee before committing local funds.

Looking ahead, if awarded, the grant would move through the county budget and committee process for final approval of any local match or recurring subscription costs.