Two contractors, one from Jackson and the other from Vicksburg, were the only companies submitting bids for the city of Vicksburg’s Group 2 paving project.

The Board of Mayor and Aldermen opened the bids from APAC of Mississippi and Central Asphalt at its meeting Tuesday. APAC, which has a plant in Vicksburg, bid $2,101,006.23, while Central Asphalt bid $1,958,333 for the project. Both bids were taken under advisement.

Streets being paved under Group 2 include:

• Ward 1: Tully Street, Walters Street, King Street, Jefferson Circle, Johnson Street, Spout Springs Road, Lane Street, Monument Street, Dallas Street, Portland Street, Bowmar Avenue and Washington Street intersection, Depot Street and Washington Street intersection.

Ward 2: Indiana Avenue from N. Frontage Road to Confederate Avenue, Bellaire Drive from Porter’s Chapel Road to the top of the hill, Kendra Drive from Northridge to Long Meadow and Mission Park Drive.

Under the paving project, Ward 2 Alderman Alex Monsour and Mayfield each have $2 million to spend on paving in their wards.

The board in February 2021 approved a total of 30 city streets to be paved — either a full street or street section — as part of the $4 million paving plan but had to alter the program after learning in June of an amendment to the Environmental Protection Agency regulations involving lead waterlines.

The amendment, which was approved in March, requires municipal and water district water systems with lead waterlines to submit a lead service line replacement plan to state environmental agencies by Oct. 16, 2024.

The board in November awarded a contract to Central Asphalt to pave the city streets included in Group 1, which included Indiana Avenue from Porter’s Chapel Road toward Calvary Baptist Church, Porter’s Chapel Road from Indiana Avenue toward Raintree Road and Old Halls Ferry Road in Ward 2, and Harrison Street in Ward 1.

• In another matter Tuesday, the board awarded the Vicksburg Levee Street Pedestrian Rail Crossing and Site/Utility Improvements project to Central Asphalt Co., which was the low bidder with $728,630.

Other bidders were Construction Specialists of Jackson, which bid $1.082 million and Hemphill Construction Co. of Florence, which bid $1.146 million.

The construction site is near the proposed docking facility for Viking Cruise Lines, which is leasing a 600-foot section of Vicksburg’s riverfront along the Yazoo Diversion Canal to build a facility for its cruise boats.

Viking USA LLC in November applied for a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build a dock at the Vicksburg riverfront on the Yazoo River Diversion Canal. It is presently leasing dock space from American Cruise Lines.