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Public works warns $1–2.5 million annual funding gap to deliver county—s 6-year Transportation Improvement Program
Summary
Public Works presented the county—s draft six-year Transportation Improvement Program and priority array, reporting a structural funding shortfall and urging council prioritization for failing marine and road infrastructure.
San Juan County Public Works told the County Council on Sept. 9 that the draft six-year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) contains numerous projects lacking secured funding and that county staff estimate an annual shortfall of roughly $1 million to $2.5 million to deliver proposed work.
Deputy Director Jesse (identified in the meeting as Jesse Douglas Bites) and Public Works staff reviewed the TIP, priority array and a set of cut-sheets for proposed projects including marine facility repairs, bridge and road work, and park-related access projects. Staff said the county currently has funding for only a small subset of projects (for example, the Pearpoint Turnporn sidewalk and the Hunter Bay Marine Facility) and that many marine facilities were built decades ago and now require substantial repairs.
Public Works described three programmatic responses: remove two completed projects from the TIP (Upper Deer Harbor Road and San Juan Valley Road improvements), retain important but unfunded projects on the priority array for future consideration, or identify additional funding sources to match the program. The department asked council to either remove roughly two-thirds of proposed projects or find additional funding to meet the program.
Council members emphasized marine facility failures and urged regional and state advocacy for funding. Council discussed staff capacity constraints: Public Works has a small in-house engineering team, is using consultants for design and permitting, and has an advertised vacant position; staff said projects with secured funding receive prioritization but in-house capacity remains limited.
No new taxes, levies or specific grant applications were approved at the meeting. Council directed continued field reviews, additional public and council discussion, and follow-up at subsequent TIP meetings later in September.
