Coos Bay Urban Renewal Agency approves FY25-26 downtown and Empire capital projects, pauses Front Street design

The Coos Bay Urban Renewal Agency voted to approve staff’s recommended fiscal year 2025–26 capital improvement projects for the Downtown and Empire urban renewal districts, but removed the proposed Front Street south design from the package pending further cost information and directed staff to return with a revised Front Street plan.

Agency staff presented a set of boardwalk, sidewalk and road projects for the Downtown URA and a set of road and design projects for the Empire URA before the agency took a voice vote to approve staff's recommendation with the Front Street south element excluded. The motion was made and seconded and carried by voice; the agency did not record a roll-call tally in the meeting transcript.

The Downtown boardwalk package includes four projects the staff says will improve safety and long-term resilience: reroofing three boardwalk pavilions with metal roofing to meet current wind and building standards; replacing roughly 925–936 linear feet of plastic chain-link-style handrail with a hal handrail consistent with recent work near the Coos History Museum; constructing a roughly 3-foot retaining wall south of the main ADA ramp with drainage features; and removing glass from one enclosed pavilion and replacing it with handrails to deter pigeons. Staff estimated the four boardwalk projects at…