HR City Council Approves May Street Sidewalk fix Despite Frustration with ODOT
Cracks in the supports are visible in the May Street elevated sidewalk above. HR Council moved ahead with replacing it on Monday, May 13, but some councilors also aired their frustrations over the process that involved the Oregon Department of Transportation.
By Ken Park
Hood River City Council reluctantly voted to proceed with the replacement of the May Street elevated sidewalk, and voiced frustration with the state government.
The elevated sidewalk was constructed in 1945 and stretches along the north side of May Street from 13th Street to Katie Lane. Its unique construction was designed to accommodate the area's topographical features, though it remains safe to walk on, over the years the sidewalk has developed noticeable cracks and voids, indicating that it's time for a full replacement.
In 2019 the City of Hood River entered into a local agency agreement with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), with ODOT covering the design and engineering phases of the project, which initially had a project cost estimate of $2 million.
ODOT secured $1.5 million in federal funds from the Multimodal Transportation Enhancement program, while the City of Hood River committed to providing $579,281 in local matching funds.
As the project has reached the end of its design phase, hood River Public Works noted that a portion of the sidewalk project would intersect with the proposed Heights Streetscape roundabout project, scheduled to begin in spring/summer 2025. This development presented the Hood River City Council with a pressing dilemma: proceed with the sidewalk replacement as planned or risk incurring significant costs by postponing the project.
The council ultimately moved to continue the project, but if it had opted to delay the project, it would be obligated to cover all design costs incurred by ODOT, amounting to approximately $700,000.
Choosing to move forward will likely lead to an increase in matching funds from the city, potentially reaching $1.4 million based on current construction cost estimates.
Councilor Megan Saunders
Council member Megan Saunders expressed frustration over the situation's financial implications for the city and advocated for engaging in dialogue with the Governor's office to seek potential resolutions.
“I would like to do some political conversations with the Governor's office and our legislative representatives, to talk about how stupid this is and how much it's bankrupting us to work with a particular state agency,” Saunders said.
Saunders expressed a desire to begin that conversation before a decision was made to move forward with the project or not, but time constraints would not allow for it.
“I would like to open that conversation with them anyway, even if we have to make a decision tonight,” Saunder said.
Saunders also noted that this is not the first time that the City of Hood River has run into this issue with a state agency.
“It just breaks us you know, and there's no other option,” Saunders said. “ Like the option is to spend a bunch of money to get nothing and we can’t keep doing this.”
Pending the finalization of the project's design, ODOT would initiate the bidding process, and the city would transition into the construction phase. However, projected construction costs could escalate to a total of $3.3 million, with the city's share amounting to $1.7 million.
To address the financial strain posed by the project, the city is exploring various avenues for funding, including securing a loan from the ODOT Infrastructure Bank, leveraging congressional spending allocations, or negotiating costs as part of a jurisdictional transfer request for the Heights area.
Grant Polson
Council member Grant Polson noted he is in favor of the latter.
“It gives control of the local streets back to the local jurisdictions to fix or adjust as need be for localities,’ Polson said.
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