NORRIDGEWOCK -- Selectmen will decide tonight which contractor to award a bid to fix the portion of Sandy River Road that was washed away by heavy rains this summer.

The 30-foot-long section of road will be closed for two weeks once the contractor begins the road reconstruction, Town Manager Michelle Flewelling said.

The town will close the stretch of road for safety reasons. "We're concerned that once they start the excavation process, although (the road) is stable at this time, it could become unstable, and we don't want to find that out when someone is driving over it," she said.

The town will notify the public when it sets a time frame for the construction, she said.

"It's a fairly straightforward project," she said. The stabilization project, which is mostly funded by federal disaster assistance, will involve tree removal and reconstruction of the road.

The total project cost is $46,993. The federal government pays for 75 percent; the state pays for 15 percent; and the town pays for 10 percent, she said.

The stretch of road is located in a rural part of town, along the Sandy River between Childs Road and Winding Hill Road. The road can be reached by both Winding Hill Road and Airport Road.

The trouble began in late June and early July when the river level rose and some trees fell into the river and took chunks of the embankment with it.

That section was unharmed by the heavy rains this weekend, Flewelling said.

Erin Rhoda -- 474-9534

erhoda@mainetoday.com