Hwy 211 & Molalla Ave Signal Project

Thank you  for your question.  This project is in the final stages of completion, but as you mentioned has been delayed.  This is due in part to the snow days we experienced and in part due to working with a State Agency (ODOT).  The contractor is currently working through ODOT's punch list (minor corrections prior to ODOT acceptance of the project), then signal timing and finally project completion.  One of the items that needed to be addressed is moving the internet cable up and away from the light which is scheduled to take place during the weekend of 1/29-1/30.  The new expected completion date is February 10th per the ODOT contact on the project.

Thank you for your question.  There is really no way to fully explain the multitude of public project financing tools and techniques without many years of education and experience.  With that said, the signal at Molalla Ave/Hwy 211 is being funded by the Cascade Center developer in proportion to their impact on the intersection, and the remainder by Urban Renewal funds.  ODOT is responsible for design standards/approval, inspection, timing, and maintenance of the signal - subject to intergovernmental agreements.  

For purposes of your question, the most straight forward answer is that ODOT funding for signals is typically only available in the form of grants and these grants are typically only made if a project is adopted into ODOT's 3-year Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP).  Additionally, the city would be liable for a portion of the signal (the intersection has a state highway and a city street) even if an ODOT grant was received, and grant funding is competitive so there is no guarantee the project would be selected for funding even if included in the STIP.  In short, a signal that meets warrants must meet operational and design approvals, then the city must apply to have the project included in the STIP which is only open every 3-years, and if adopted in the STIP, the city would need to apply for and be awarded grant funds for the project.  The time cost, administrative burden, and increased costs associated with public procurement, public contracting, and prevailing wage requirements, would drive the project cost up and render the project extremely uncertain and heavily delayed.  

Instead, the city opted to use what is standard practice in this arena and require the developer to build the signal (this removes significant costs in public procurement, contracting, prevailing wage and project administration) with reimbursement for all but the developer's proportionate impact on the intersection.  This also ensured the signal would not be delayed for several years as the intersection and associated traffic pattern was in desperate need of signal control.  The costs payed by the Urban Renewal fund will be recouped long-term by the developer's expansion of the Urban Renewal tax base, and reimbursement SDC's from future development, so at the end of the day the signal is funded by development and in essence the city has provided Urban Renewal funds up front to get the project completed expeditiously and with the reduced costs of private developer improvement versus a wholly public project.  

Thank you for your question. I will get this question to the right City Staff and respond by updating this question as soon as I get the information. 

Update: The Engineer's Cost Estimate for the Signal Project is $568,187 including a standard 10% contingency. 

We go off the project schedule and if construction ceases sooner than projected it's a welcome bonus for us all!  If there are major changes to the schedule we will post the updates on the Current. 

I had to use Google translate to read and respond to the question, this is a publicly available tool that only requires a simple cut and paste for future reference. The question is in Spanish and asks if/when Spanish translation will be coming to the current. The response is that we are working diligently on brining translation to the Current but have not yet found the appropriate tool to facilitate it. 

The project is being funded by the Cascade Center Developer and the City of Molalla. 

Thank you for your question. Please visit the "Key Dates" and/or the project schedule under "Important Documents" for this information. 

Mis disculpas que aún no hemos determinado la mejor manera de ofrecer esta información en español. Tenga la seguridad de que estamos trabajando para que eso suceda y no descansaremos hasta que lo hagamos. Si conoce a alguien que estaría dispuesto a hacer una traducción básica hasta que se pueda encontrar una solución final, con mucho gusto acepto su ayuda. Simplemente dígales que se comuniquen con Mac Corthell en el Ayuntamiento si conoce a alguien. ¡Gracias!