PORT TOWNSEND — The City Council has unanimously approved a process to forcibly acquire property needed for a $5.5 million Howard Street extension project, but neither the mayor nor the city attorney feels it will be necessary.
“We need to have this process available, although I don’t think we will use it,” said Mayor David King during Monday night’s council meeting.
City Attorney Steve Gross told the council he did not expect that eminent domain would be invoked, although he now has the approval to do so without council approval.
The project will connect West Sims Way and Discovery Road by extending Howard Street and is expected to turn 82 acres of vacant and under-utilized land into shovel-ready industrial property.
The city needs to acquire portions or rights of way of nine parcels to finish the connection.
City Engineer David Peterson said seven of the properties are in escrow and the purchase agreement of one property is signed, leaving only one property in doubt.
Peterson said the specified portions of all nine properties are necessary for the completion of the project.
“It all fits together like the pieces of a puzzle,” Peterson said.
Gross said the city has budgeted a maximum of $305,000 from the city’s general fund for right-of-way acquisition. The amount is split about evenly between consultant fees and purchase costs, he said.
Construction of the extension and a traffic circle where Howard Street intersects with Discovery Road is expected to begin in February and be completed by the end of the year, according to project manager Samantha Trone.
However, the city will lose grants and loans for the project if ownership of property isn’t secured by the end of 2015.
“If we don’t have a commitment [from property owners] by the end of the year, we will lose the funding for the project,” King said.
The project will be funded by a $300,000 grant from the Community Economic Revitalization Board; a $2.1 million grant from the state Transportation Improvement Board; $1.05 million from the state Department of Transportation; and $1.7 million of water and sewer utility funds from the city.
Making up the difference is a $1.2 million loan, also from the Community Economic Revitalization Board, which will be split between the Howard Street project and the development of an adjacent stormwater system.
Howard Street currently ends about 800 feet north of Sims Way and 400 feet south of Discovery Road.
The extension would be built on what is now trail and open land, taking a jog around existing homes.
It will provide additional traffic options for motorists, and a roundabout will aid traffic flow, city officials have said.
In several cases, the installation of the right of way will increase property value on some parcels by improving their frontage, King said.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
