Two-lane Woodin Ave. bridge design and costs to be explored
- Nic Scott
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Chelan citizens shared their idea of returning the Woodin Ave. bridge to two-way traffic, and now the Chelan City Council has unanimously decided to move forward on the proposal.
KPFF, Inc. has been hired as a consultant to assist the city in determining a design and associated costs.
"It might be more appropriate to have a low-end and high-end estimate," City Public Works Director Jake Youngren shared with the city council on Tuesday. "What we'll call a 36-foot cross section, from hand railing to hand railing, and the other a 44-foot cross section. The 36 kinda gives you minimum standards for travel lane, shoulder and five-foot (wide) sidewalks."
The current one-way bridge is reportedly 28-feet wide.
The width of a new bridge brought about a concern from one city councilor.
"The impacts on adjacent intersections that might require improvements - it's the elephant in the room," said Councilor Tim Hollingsworth.
"It's a disaster to widen the bridge," said Councilman Bob Goedde in consideration of changing the current alignment of the span. "Those are currently 10-foot lanes, and for 90 years without an accident. I also want something in there about late model technology like light weight concrete. I don't want this to be the Taj Mahal, I want it to be the most effective thing we can get."
Following the council’s first step on the potential Woodin Ave bridge realignment, Mayor Erin McCardle talked about the importance of costs and the ability to pay for improvements.
"Council needs to have as much information as they can to make informed decisions," said Mayor Erin McCardle on the hiring of a consultant.
Added sales tax revenues derived from the .03% increase approved by voters earlier this year fuels the city Transportation Benefit District, assisting the city in the ability to pay for road, bridge and sidewalk improvements. The increased sales tax revenues, paid by residents and visitors alike, will bring in an estimated $900,000 annually.
Chelan Communications Director Chad Coltman said in addition to exploring bridge realignment cost estimates, a traffic analysis will assist in determining if a two-way bridge will have the desired effect of reducing traffic downtown.
"Valley wide transportation planning is kicking off now," added the Mayor. "We're doing some traffic counts at five different intersections that feed into highway 150. Combine that with growth that is happening in Manson, the growth that's happening in Orondo, the growth that's happening along south shore, the growth that's happening within the city of Chelan. So, we have a holistic view and a long range view of here's where all the traffic demands are potentially happening."