City officials could be paying additional money to repair four erosion problems in the city after the two bids received for the project were more than $200,000 over budget.

The Board of Mayor and Aldermen Tuesday took the bids from Foster Associates LLC of Ackerman and Fordice Construction of Vicksburg to repair the four sites in the city.

Foster and Associates bid $799,318 while Fordice Construction of Vicksburg bid $774,866 to repair the four sites: an erosion problem on Second North Street; an erosion and slide area along a drainage ditch behind homes along Columbia Avenue; a washout area at Halls Ferry Road and Lane Street; and erosion on Polk Street near a house.

The projects are funded through a $560,571.65 Natural Resources Conservation Service grant, with NRCS contributing $430,206.15 and the city providing a $130,365.50 match.

Mayor George Flaggs Jr. did not say if he would recommend the board accept the low bid.

“I haven’t got the (available budget) numbers to see,” he said.

Flaggs said he would meet with city accounting director Doug Whittington to discuss possible funding options before making a decision.

The NRCS-funded sites are part of a group of 13 areas in Vicksburg that were affected when strong rains hit the area in January and April 2020.

The other areas include Riverfront Park, James E. Sturgis Sr. Street, Crestline Lane (street), Greenhill, a culvert on Crestline Lane, a culvert near the intersection of Iowa Boulevard and U.S. 61 South near McDonald’s and the City Park project to replace a damaged walking trail and replace fencing. These areas will be repaired using emergency funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

When FEMA did not approve Clover Lane and Farmer Street for emergency funds, city officials applied for and received NRCS funds.

The board in February approved taking a $4 million short-term loan to begin repairs at some of the slide areas while waiting on the federal money. The loan will be repaid with federal funds.