Legislative session bodes well for Blaine

State lawmakers adjourned the 60-day session on March 8. Several bills, budgets await the signature of Governor Jay Inslee.

By Stefanie Donahue

Staff with the city of Blaine are anxiously waiting for Governor Jay Inslee to sign a bill and budget into law that will allocate a combined $1.75 million to two large infrastructure projects in Blaine.

More than 300 bills were passed by state lawmakers during the 60-day legislative session in addition to supplemental operating, capital and transportation budgets, which were passed just days prior to the session adjourning on March 8.

The highlights for Blaine include the allocation of $1.2 million to extend utility infrastructure to east Blaine and $550,000 to update an Interchange Justification Report (IJR) for a project to add a new southbound off-ramp on I-5 at exit 274.

I believe the work done by our lobbyists as well as going to Olympia for face-to-face contact with key legislators made a tremendous difference in our success, said mayor Bonnie Onyon in an email to city staff. Prior to the session beginning, the city contracted two consultants from Gordon Thomas Honeywell Governmental Affairs for lobbying services.

I-5/Exit 274

The city came close to receiving funding for the I-5/Exit 274 interchange project during the 2016 and 2017 legislative sessions.

In 2016, Senator Doug Ericksen removed the project from the transportation budget last-minute in favor of Ferndale and Lynden-based projects. In 2017, Inslee vetoed the project from the transportation budget, citing lack of information about its cost and scope; that year, the House and Senate approved $12.1 million for the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium.

During a regular city council meeting on March 12, city manager Dave Wilbrecht said he didnt expect Inslee to make any last-minute changes like last year. He said the funding will make a big difference to the city and noted the need to leverage additional funding down the road.

District 42 representative Vincent Buys (R-Lynden) echoed a similar sentiment, saying, Once the study is complete, we look forward to working with the House Transportation Committee to find matching state dollars to fix the perennial issue our community members have had with that intersection and provide a better off ramp for both north- and south-bound traffic.

Representative and House Transportation Committee member Luanne Van Werven (R-Lynden) said, The $550,000 for the IJR for I-5/exit 274 is a good start and necessary for federal funding in the future. It also keeps this project in the queue for future state transportation budgets.

The funding allocated to the I-5/Exit 274 interchange project in the Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program (LEAP) transportation budget will be used to update the citys IJR, which was completed in 2009. Staff with the Washington State Department of Transportation will update the report, which determines the financial feasibility of the project plan.

In 2016, the I-5/Exit 274 interchange project yielded a costly $45 million price tag. The next year, the city formed a new, more cost-effective plan and during the 2018 session, requested $25 million for phase two of the project, plus $550,000 for the IJR update.

This session, Ericksen introduced Senate Bill 6440, which didnt pass, but would have allocated $12.1 million toward the project. Im disappointed we werent able to restore the money, Ericksen said.

City staff were grateful to be able to update the IJR.

While we hoped to fund exit 274 in its entirety, we didnt get our hopes up that in a supplemental budget year that would indeed transpire, said Blaine public works director Ravyn Whitewolf. We are extremely pleased with the outcome of both requests.

East Blaine

State lawmakers included a project that will extend utilities infrastructure to east Blaine in the supplemental capital budget, approved this month.

The city requested $3.25 million, but was allocated $1.2 million instead. The project is expected to spur long-awaited residential development in east Blaine.

[This is] a big win, Ericksen said. It will reduce water and sewer rates for everyone in Blaine.

Currently, three medium-to-large development projects Bridges Plat, East Maple Ridge and Grandis Pond await proper utility infrastructure, such as connection to sewer and power. Combined, the projects contain more than 1,400 lots and each has received approval to build from the city.

Considering this was a supplemental budget we were fortunate to receive $1.2 million for the east Blaine utility infrastructure project. Van Werven said. Blaine is on the verge of expansion and the mixed-use housing project of Grandis Pond is key to that growth.

In 2017, the city paid for a 1,450-foot extension of sewer line through Lincoln Park and along D Street, but could not afford the cost of extending utilities further east. In all, extending utilities will cost $6.2 million; already, a private developer has committed $3 million in matching funds, according to the citys legislative funding request.

By the end of the year, Whitewolf said she is hopeful the city can use the money to extend utilities up to the site of the East Maple Ridge development, which is located near Lincoln Park.

It was a large ask in a supplemental year when most districts were given only a few hundred thousand dollars in project funding, Buys said. We should be able to find funding for the remainder of the project when we create a new, biennial capital budget next session.