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American Infrastructure knew it was taking a chance when it bid on a state contract to repave a section of New Hampshire Avenue, because the funding for the project hadn't been approved yet.

But taking the risk gave the Worcester, Pa., heavy construction company the opportunity to be the low bidder for the first federally funded project under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, said Mark Compton, director of government affairs for American Infrastructure. The company employs about 1,800 nationally, including 320 in Maryland, where it has a Fallston office.

American Infrastructure submitted the low bid for the $1.8 million project to resurface the 1.1-mile stretch of New Hampshire Avenue in the White Oak area of Silver Spring, a project that has drawn national attention to the company, Compton said.

"We had no idea this would be the first one," he said.

Maryland moved ahead of other states by bidding out the projects even before Congress passed the $787 billion stimulus package, with the caveat that the contract was subject to congressional passage, he said.

"We knew we were bidding at risk, but it was a risk we were willing to take," Compton said. "As a management team, we're not going to sleep until we get all of our guys working again."

As the first of the "shovel-ready" projects to be funded with the federal stimulus money, the New Hampshire Avenue workers have been visited by crews from "Good Morning America" and CNN, said project superintendent John Greenwald.

"It's good for people to see where the money is going," Greenwald said. "The guys we have are great. It's good we have them back to work. American Infrastructure is like a big family, and it's good to get them back to work."

The money not only allowed the company to bring back 20 laid-off employees to work on the project, it will repair a road badly in need of fixing, Greenwald said. The project will employ 60 people over the course of the contract, and the project is expected to take until September.

Bryan White, 47, of Aberdeen was one of the employees who got the call to return to work.

"It's wonderful," White said of the project, cited as the first in the nation under the $26.6 billion released to state and local governments to repair and build roadways and bridges. "It's going to create more jobs. I know I'm happy."

White is usually laid off during the winter months due to the seasonal nature of his job, but with the economy in the tank and state and county governments cutting back on infrastructure work, he had feared that his layoff would be extended.

"Now I'm getting caught up on bills," he said. "That's the big thing right now."

The pavement above the concrete is cracked deeply at the concrete's seams due to a combination of heavy traffic and weather. Patches are only a short-term solution. The old pavement will be milled down before the new surface is applied. The company also will repair curbs and disability ramps.

"The need is there for the infrastructure work," Greenwald said. "The State Highway (Administration) doesn't just put a Band-Aid on it. They do it right."

Ray Walsh, a subcontractor driving a sweeper truck, said he had not been laid off, but was beginning to worry that he would be — until the New Hampshire Avenue project came along.

"So, it was getting scary there," he said.

Tim Radel, 27, an equipment operator with American Infrastructure, said being called means a lot.

"We're just lucky we're one of the first ones back to work," he said.

Other road projects in the works

Federal stimulus money is ready to flow for other road projects in Maryland.

"That's money that's already received, that's in play. The transportation money is some of the first money to come through," said Eric Brenner, director of Gov. Martin O'Malley's grants office. "The money's either been sent or identified for county use. … All the Phase One projects have been identified or are under way, but under way could mean that the money has been allocated but the bid process is currently still open."

In Frederick County, for example, in addition to the specific projects, Phase One transportation money will fund $4.6 million worth of roadway resurfacing, supporting an expected 132 jobs; and $800,000 worth of safety and Americans with Disabilities Act contracts and improvements, supporting an expected 23 jobs.

Phase One of the transportation funds will provide the state $365 million in federal funds. Phase Two will provide $273 million more.

"The funding for the projects that we have for Phase One needs to be rolled out within 120 days for highways, or 180 for transit, before it goes back to a bigger pot nationwide, so Maryland started preparing early to make sure we could meet the deadlines," said Kellie Boulware, spokeswoman for the Maryland State Highway Administration.

An announcement is expected by the end of the month for the second phase of transportation funds, according to the governor's office. In total, Maryland will receive $638 million in stimulus funds for highway and transit, supporting about 17,500 jobs, according to the state Department of Transportation.

As of Tuesday, the state has also either sent or made available to counties money for mass transit, health care, education and public safety.

The federal government continues to make more stimulus money available, according to Brenner, and it will likely have made money available in all funding areas within a few months.

"Every day something new is rolling down," Brenner said. "… By May I think you're going to see action in really every part of the bill."

Staff Writer Connor Adams Sheets contributed to this report.