PORT TOWNSEND — The Jefferson County commissioners approved changes to the Rick Tollefson Memorial Trail due to unforeseen issues in the trail’s construction.
The alterations were approved during the commissioners’ meeting Monday as part of the consent agenda. The changes will add $26,450.80 to the $557,319 already approved and awarded to Shold Excavating Inc. of Port Hadlock.
The $26,450 will pay for the relocation of a farm road on the Bellow property, the relocation of private utilities for the Anderson property, increased landscaping and a change to the deck construction for the pedestrian bridge, according to the statement submitted by the county Public Works Department.
Even with the additional cost, the budget for the trail is still under the trail’s original estimated cost of $652,319.
The changes also will add an estimated seven work days to the project, which began in late June with the first phase of the trail.
Phase one is a section 0.33 miles long and 10 feet wide and connects HJ Carroll Park to Old Hadlock Road.
The trail itself, which has been discussed since 2009, will ultimately connect HJ Carroll Park to the Bob Bates Little League Field in Port Hadlock.
The plans also include a route to the Chimacum schools, allowing a way for children to get to recreation areas without having to ride or walk along busy roads.
Work is expected to wrap up in late October and the project will be paid for out of the county road fund.
The trail is a memorial to Tollefson, who in 1980 helped created the county parks committee and served on the park advisory board from 1989 until his death in 2007.
________
Jefferson County Editor/Reporter Cydney McFarland can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 55052, or at cmcfarland@peninsuladailynews.com.
