College Place advances Lions Park work, wins $3.5M for road rebuild and eyes water-storage fixes

College Place City Administrator Mike Riztelo on Feb. 2025 provided a city project update announcing a contract increase to keep the Lions Park construction on schedule, the City Council’s recent adoption of a regional hazard mitigation plan, a memorandum of understanding with the YMCA to use leftover grant funds for design of a replacement Lions Park Community Center, and a $3.5 million Public Works Trust Fund award to rebuild Birch Avenue.

The update matters because several of the projects are tied to state or federal grant eligibility and to near-term construction timelines: the Lions Park work aims to be ready for the May farmers market season, the hazard mitigation plan adoption preserves eligibility for hazard-related grants, and the Birch Avenue award funds a multi‑year reconstruction including water and sewer replacement.

Riztelo said the council at its most recent meeting approved an increase to a construction contract on the Lions Park project so the schedule can be maintained ahead of a planned May opening. He also said the council adopted the hazard mitigation plan that was prepared with county emergency management; jurisdictions with a plan adopted in the past six years are eligible for certain state and federal capital grants.

Riztelo credited the YMCA and its executive director, Karen Hedin, for agreeing to use leftover state grant funds to pay for architectural design work for a replacement Lions Park Community Center under a memorandum of understanding the council adopted. He said the plan for the replacement building calls for classroom space that would be used for childcare operated by the YMCA, a commercial kitchen, a permanent branch for the rural library district and a community room, and that the existing community center will be demolished and rebuilt at the same location.

Public works highlights included a $3.5 million award from the Public Works Trust Fund to reconstruct Birch Avenue between Fourth and Sixth and Sixth between Date and College; the project’s plans are complete and the city plans to bid the work this summer, Riztelo said. The reconstruction will include new sidewalks, pavement, and water and sewer infrastructure.

Riztelo outlined multiple water and wastewater projects: engineering work on seismic retrofitting for the town’s central water tower, engineering for a new water tank at the wastewater treatment plant bluff to address an approximately 600,000‑gallon storage deficiency and to provide an additional roughly 400,000 gallons for future development, completion of a wastewater lift station (Lift Station No. 5) and related sidewalk and street work once local asphalt plants reopen, and Phase 1A work at the wastewater treatment plant to replace mechanical equipment.

Other project notes included sidewalk and pedestrian-light projects funded by state grants (Eighth Street sidewalk connecting downtown to Lyons Park, pedestrian lights along a multi‑use path on Rose Street, and pedestrian lights and sidewalk work on Southwest Davis between Whitman and Sixth), ongoing work on the Lakeside development (developers submitting documents and potential hearing examiner meetings), acceleration of the city’s comprehensive plan update with JUB Engineers and Planners to meet an adoption deadline in roughly mid‑2026 to preserve state grant eligibility, and right‑of‑way work on John Your Road targeted for construction this summer.

On operations and staffing, Riztelo said the city continues to recruit for multiple positions, including a stormwater coordinator, a finance grant analyst to process grants, and parks/arbor and storm positions in public works. He also said College Place Fire continues to recruit volunteers for its combined volunteer and career model and provided a contact for those interested.

Riztelo noted several administrative items: a community emergency response training (CERT) partnership with Walla Walla County Emergency Management scheduled March 11–13 at the alumni center; energy‑bill assistance screening available through Blue Mountain Action Council; an upcoming discussion about a consolidation feasibility study for nearby irrigation districts and the Garrison Creek homeowners association to evaluate management or operational agreements; and a possible future council decision on whether to evaluate returning court services from the county to city management.

The update included outreach information: Community Development Director John Rickard (email jrickard@cpwa.us) for questions about petitions to add adjacent properties to the urban growth area as part of the comprehensive plan process, and City Clerk Mary Elizabeth Garcia (email mgarcia@cpwa.us) for those interested in a downtown association or Main Street recognition.

Votes and formal actions referenced in the update were described by Riztelo as having occurred at the city council’s Feb. 11 meeting; the transcript notes council adoption of the hazard mitigation plan, adoption of the memorandum of understanding with the YMCA to use leftover grant funds for design work, and approval of a contract increase for Lions Park construction. The transcript does not include mover/second names or vote tallies for those actions.