FERNDALE - A new sales tax for road repairs has already reaped dividends greater than the tax money alone.

City officials learned over the summer that Ferndale had won an $800,000 federal grant to cover most of the repairs to badly damaged Thornton Road, in front of Skyline Elementary School. The road is scheduled to be rebuilt from Vista Drive to just west of Maureen Drive starting June 2013 at an estimated cost of $990,000.

Ferndale's grant application was aided by the new tax because the local officials who evaluated the applications knew the city would be able to cover some of the cost, said Public Works Director Janice Marlega.

The Thornton repair is the top priority on the list of fixes to be paid for with the new 0.2 percent sales tax, which went into effect on July 1. The tax generated $23,700 in its first month, said Finance Director Mark Peterson.

Reach RALPH SCHWARTZ at ralph.schwartz@bellinghamherald.com or call 360-715-2289. Read the Politics Blog at blogs.bellinghamherald.com/politics.