Thurston County has been awarded over $1.6 million in federal funding from the National Highway System Asset Management Program for the design and construction of the first phase of the Chehalis Western Trail preservation project.
The Thurston County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved the project prospectus and local agency agreement with the Washington state Department of Transportation (WSDOT). The project will improve pavement surface conditions on the trail between 45th Avenue Southeast in Lacey and 46th Avenue Northeast in Olympia, and it will include repairs of cracking and potholes, root upheaval, edge undermining and a 2-inch overlay.
WSDOT authorizes the use of the awarded funding in phases, typically starting with design, right-of-way, then construction, and each phase requires execution of agreements or supplements. The first phase for design will authorize the obligation of $250,000 of the federal funds with a 13.5% required local match of $39,018.
According to County Engineer Matt Unzelman, the Thurston Regional Planning Council has made it a priority that trail preservation needs to receive additional resources. Public Works Director Karen Weiss told the commissioners during a May 27 agenda-setting meeting that the county was able to leverage $200,000 in real estate excise tax funding that the board approved for trail preservation toward receiving the $1.6 million in federal funding.
