MOHAWK, N.Y. (WKTV) - Drivers in the Village of Mohawk can breath a sigh of relief now that a major construction project is complete, and the $400,000 bill won't be hitting tax payers hard, at all.

The Minnow Brook Culvert in Mohawk goes under State Highway Route 28. However, despite that fact that the culvert is under a state highway, when the culvert is in need of repair, the local municipality foots the bill.

After damage from June 2006 flooding, Minnow Brook Culvert started to erode.

The damage became so bad, that it was flagged by the D.O.T. In 2008, major recommendations for repairs were made, and without attention, the eroding culvert could have resulted in shutting down a portion of State Route 28.

However a $400,000 Multi Modal Grant secured by Senator James Seward means this project won't put a heavy burden on Mohawk taxpayers. Without the grant money, Mohawk Mayor Irene Sweet says taxpayers could have easily seen a 10% tax increase. That's something Sweet says most residents couldn't afford.

"It is a very important project, and important for residents' safety, as well as others," Sweet said. "We are a very small village and we try to contain things for our taxpayers, but sometimes things come along that are a little bit more than we can handle."

Local D.O.T. officials say construction took about three months, and now that it is complete, the design life of this project is expected to be 100 years. The Village of Mohawk requested the final reimbursement payment for the project in March.