Work on Rincon’s Fort Howard Road project should be finished soon, according to the city’s engineer.

City council members approved Monday night two pay requests from Seaboard Construction totaling $727,527 for road and drainage improvements along Fort Howard Road.

“They are wrapping it up,” said Tim Baumgartner, the city’s engineer.

Baumgartner said the punch list for a project of this size is minimal.

“I rode it Saturday for a long time,” council member Scott Morgan. “Because I was behind the striping truck. It looks good.”

Baumgartner also said the sidewalk changes look good.

“It should be a good project for the city,” he said.

The improvements to Fort Howard Road extend from Highway 21 to the city limits at Bunyan Kessler Road, a stretch of 2.2 miles. The project was estimated to cost $2.66 million.

Among the improvements are widening and resurfacing, along with the addition of a turn lane. Fort Howard Road’s average daily traffic is approximately 11,400 vehicles.

A sidewalk on the south side also has been installed, and the project also called for piping the existing deep drainage ditches and minimizing the depth of any required drainage swales along the road’s shoulders.

Baumgartner said the road should be completed in the next few weeks.

Council members also approved the purchase of a 2013 Dodge Charger, at the state contract price of $22,805.04, for the police department. Council members also gave Chief Phillip Scholl the go-ahead to submit an application to the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police for a department certification program.

The certification of the department could take up to three years to complete, and Scholl said he has a target date of 18 months.

“If we are successful, it would be a big bonus,” the chief said, adding it could reduce the city’s liability insurance.