DIXFIELD — Town Manager Carlo Puiia told the Board of Selectmen that the final bill has been received for the Safe Routes to School project, which had been defeated at a November 2015 special town meeting.

In early 2013, the town agreed to move forward with construction of 3,500 feet of sidewalk from Dirigo High School to T.W. Kelly Dirigo Middle School and a sidewalk the length of Nash Street to the Regional School Unit 10 superintendent’s building.

The cost would be split between the town and the Maine Department of Transportation, with MDOT paying 80 percent and the town paying 20 percent.

During a special town meeting Oct. 1, 2015, townspeople overwhelmingly voted against appropriating $46,850 from surplus as a 20 percent match for building a sidewalk along Weld Street.

Later in the same meeting, selectmen voted 3-2 against moving forward with the project.

However, Puiia told the board that the town would be responsible for Wright-Pierce’s engineering costs of $35,306, as well as additional funds to the Maine Department of Transportation.

During Monday evening’s board meeting, Puiia told the board that the final bill was $41,388.

“That covers the engineering costs, including the rights of way that they had to obtain to build the sidewalks,” Puiia said. “After the bill is paid, the project will be officially closed.”

Resident Peter Holman asked the board how long the Wright-Pierce engineering plans could be used.

“Well, as long as the geography of the sidewalk doesn’t change, I’d say the plans would be good forever,” Chairman Hart Daley said. “We could always use the plans somewhere down the line. The prices may change, but the plans should be good.”

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