LOXLEY — A federal grant will help Loxley officials start work on a project to restore the stream of the Corn Branch tributary.

The town received a $250,000 grant through the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, known as GOMESA. Robert Davis, town utilities superintendent, said the grant will pay for the engineering and design work on a project to restore the stream bed along a tributary of Corn Branch, off Baldwin County 49.

"This runs past the public works barn and the property at the wastewater plant and on over onto the grounds at Loxley Elementary School. You can see the kids playing around it on the playground," he said. "This will get us started with design and engineering, but we'll need more funding for the rest of the project."

Under the terms of the GOMESA grant, the town will not have to provide any matching funds for the project.

He said the estimated cost to complete construction on the stream restoration project to stabilize the bed of the branch is $2.5 million. Davis said town officials will be seeking additional funding, including more money from the GOMESA program and other sources, in order to pay for the work.

On Monday, April 25, the Loxley Town Council voted to appoint Thompson Engineering to design and engineer the Loxley Corn Creek Tributary Restoration Project.

The GOMESA program gives money to the four states that allow oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico. The states and coastal counties, parishes and cities share 37.5% of the qualified revenue from oil and gas leases in the Gulf.

In Alabama, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources administers the distribution.

In October, Gov. Kay Ivey announced that 17 projects in Baldwin and Mobile counties, including the Loxley Corn Creek tributary, had been approved for $41 million in GOMESA funding.