Navajo Nation Awards $1.09M Contract for Chee Dodge Road in McKinley County

FNF Construction won a $1.09 million contract today from the Navajo Nation Division of Transportation to carry out the Chee Dodge Elementary Access Road Project along U.S. 491 in McKinley County, New Mexico. The award, announced Feb. 21, 2026, names improvements including roadway widening, acceleration and deceleration lanes, and median upgrades to the access corridor serving Chee Dodge Elementary.

The contract covers work directly adjacent to U.S. 491, a primary artery through this part of McKinley County, and is billed as an access-road project to the school. The Navajo Nation Division of Transportation selected FNF Construction to implement the scope the agency submitted for the Chee Dodge Elementary Access Road Project under the $1.09 million budget.

Project documents list specific traffic elements: widening of the existing roadway, construction of acceleration/deceleration lanes to facilitate safer turning movements, and upgrades to the median configuration along the stretch of U.S. 491 by the school. Those changes are intended to change the physical layout of the access road; the contract value for those tasks is $1.09 million.

Parents, school staff and daily commuters who use U.S. 491 near Chee Dodge Elementary should note the contract award and expect future notices about construction timing and traffic controls. The Navajo Nation Division of Transportation and FNF Construction will be responsible for scheduling work and posting detour or lane-change signage along U.S. 491 as the access-road improvements proceed.

McKinley County drivers and school transportation coordinators should monitor announcements from the Navajo Nation Division of Transportation for a start date and phasing information tied to the $1.09 million contract. The contract award on Feb. 21, 2026, moves the Chee Dodge Elementary Access Road Project from planning into procurement, with FNF Construction now tasked with delivering the roadway widening, acceleration/deceleration lanes and median upgrades along U.S. 491.