Mohave County has come up with a list of infrastructure projects that can be initiated if a federal stimulus plan is approved, with one project slated for the Havasu area.

David Bell/News-Herald Photo Vehicles travel up and down the hills and valleys on London Bridge Road in Desert Hills between Chenoweth Drive and the Shops at Lake Havasu Regional Lifestyle Center. The road, routinely rendered impassable during even a small rainfall, is the only project in the Havasu area on the wish list of Mohave County for federal funding under President-elect Barack Obama’s stimulus proposal.

President-elect Barack Obama has expressed a desire to federally fund state, county and municipal construction projects as a way to get people working and stimulate the economy. While no details have been finalized, local governments have been compiling “wish lists” of projects to use federal money if it becomes available.

The county’s list includes $44,900,000 worth of transportation, road construction, improvements and asphalt reconstruction for Bank Street, Jagerson Avenue, Northern Avenue, Stockton Hill Road, Thompson Avenue, Hualapai Mountain Road and Old Route 66 in the Kingman area, Courtwright Road in Ft. Mohave, Diamond Bar Road near the Hualapai Reservation at Grand Canyon West, Oatman Highway, Pierce Ferry Road in Dolan Springs and Alamo Road and Knox Road in Golden Valley.

The one Havasu-area project would be improvements to London Bridge Road.

County Public Works Director Mike Hendrix said the projects were selected because each could be started within 120 days of receipt of federal money. Some projects, such as improvements to Vanderslice Road in Mohave Valley, were not included because they require additional engineering and would not make the county’s 120-day deadline.

“If federal moneys are designated to be used on these kinds of projects, we want to be ready. All of our projects are hard-core infrastructure needs. We aren’t going to bother anyone with a wish list of beautification or recreation projects,” said County Manager Ron Walker in a press release.

Lake Havasu City officials discussed the city’s wish list, which included, in addition to the ongoing sewer project, a municipal golf course that could be attached to a new four-year university.

The city also has requested funds for beautification of State Route 95, a new airport terminal, business center, new fire station, police facility solar panels and the Bridgewater Channel dredging project.

In addition to the road projects, the county is prioritizing $31,300,000 for flood protection and drainage improvement for Grace Neal Channel, Wikieup Channel and Dike and the Quail Run Subdivision, upgrades to the I-40 County Water System which serves the I-40 Industrial Corridor between Yucca and Kingman and Phase 5 of the Golden Valley Improvement District rural residential water supply system.

County staff will bring the list to the Board of Supervisors Jan. 12 for approval to submit once the federal government has adopted a formal application process.

“We don’t know exactly what the new administration’s stimulus package will be or even if there will be one,” Walker said. “But every Scout knows that the best way to achieve success is to ‘be prepared.’ Our rural county certainly needs transportation, drainage and water infrastructure improvements. And if the federal government does release funds for that kind of work, we want to make sure we have all our data current and available so that money doesn’t all go to the big cities.”

Reporter Tony Waggoner contributed to this report.