Benton-Franklin COG outlines regional transportation plans, new data tools and funding changes

Michelle Holt, executive director of the Benton‑Franklin Council of Governments, and Erin Breitsch, the COG’s Metropolitan Planning Organization director, briefed the Kennewick City Council on Aug. 25 on regional transportation planning, data tools and grant activity affecting the Tri‑Cities region.

Erin Breitsch said the COG operates under two roles: “MPO stands for Metropolitan Planning Organization. That is the federal hat we wear,” and “Regional Transportation Planning Organization is the state hat we wear.” She summarized 2025 accomplishments and near‑term work, including a call for projects completed in May and a June awards ceremony in which the City of Kennewick won funding for three projects: Columbia Centre Boulevard widening ($3,300,000), East Columbia Park bicycle improvements ($320,000) and the Kellogg–Edison pedestrian pathway ($320,000).

The COG is leading a Tri‑Cities climate approach intended to help jurisdictions meet House Bill 1181 requirements under Washington’s growth‑management framework; Breitsch described the project as a cost‑sharing measure that avoids duplicative consultant bids while providing data for jurisdictions’ comprehensive plan updates. She said the climate approach is expected to be completed in October 2025.

Regional planning work underway includes an update to the regional freight plan (last updated in 2008) and the regional transportation plan (RTP). Breitsch said the RTP update will incorporate scenario planning (baseline, low growth, high‑infill, suburban/rural growth and a redistributed‑growth alternative tied to each jurisdiction’s allocations) and is expected to be adopted in December 2026. She described the RTP as the vehicle jurisdictions use to get projects eligible for state and federal funding.

Data tools: Breitsch previewed a GIS dashboard that ties employment, housing, vehicle‑miles‑traveled (VMT), freight, crash history and growth scenarios into interactive maps and charts. The dashboard will surface traffic‑analysis‑zone (TAZ)‑level employment and housing figures, trip patterns and other metrics and will be updated periodically; Breitsch said some data are updated annually and some less frequently depending on source.

On high‑resolution travel data, Breitsch called StreetLight “the Rolls Royce of data platforms,” and described what the COG purchased with regional vehicle‑miles‑traveled funding: a one‑year StreetLight subscription (existing subscription covers a one‑year period through 07/01/2026) that the COG plans to split among jurisdictions. She said the subscription cost is roughly $100,000 and the COG intends to provide up to 10 accounts so each jurisdiction can access StreetLight outputs. Breitsch cautioned that StreetLight cannot fully replace point‑in‑time traffic counts and noted accuracy caveats tied to cell‑phone–based big data but said it can greatly supplement traffic counts and travel‑demand modeling.

Data sources and update cadence: Breitsch said the dashboard and analytics predominantly use data from the region’s 2020 transportation plans, current population projections that jurisdictions use for comprehensive plans, community survey data and WSDOT crash records. She noted WSDOT reports crashes only when property damage or vehicle damage meets the agency’s $1,000 reporting threshold, meaning some lower‑damage collisions are not captured in WSDOT’s dataset.

Economic and redevelopment work: Michelle Holt described the COG’s role beyond transportation. The COG completed a five‑year update of the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (SEDS) for the U.S. Economic Development Administration and highlighted nine Kennewick projects listed in the SEDS with a combined projected cost of $65,800,000. Holt reviewed Brownfields coalition activity: a 2021 EPA Brownfields Assessment Coalition grant provided $600,000 for regionwide assessments and paid for about $285,000 in Kennewick projects (including a downtown Kennewick assessment and work at the former KGH property and Benton County property at 10 E. Bruno). She said the COG was selected for a new $1,200,000 Brownfields coalition grant beginning in 2026 with a different set of partners and a stronger housing and rural focus.

Grant support: the COG hired a grant navigator, Kristen Eby, on a two‑year pilot to research funding opportunities, review applications and help jurisdictions evaluate whether to pursue state and federal grants. Holt said the COG sent 26 notices of funding opportunity to members so far in 2025 and that Eby is assisting the Kennewick Police Department and the BRAVE program with potential funding searches.

Budget, dues and operations proposal: Holt walked through member dues and a proposed operational change. The City of Kennewick’s 2025 dues to the COG were $57,464 (20.15% of the dues budget), she said, and the COG estimates a five‑year direct cash return to Kennewick of $43.30 for every $1 of dues paid. Holt proposed adding a $100,000 base contribution for COG operations (separate from amounts that jurisdictions pay to meet federal match requirements) to stabilize the agency’s operating cash flow. She said Ben Franklin Transit has agreed to take on payment of the full federal match for the COG’s transit program, which reduces the net burden to member jurisdictions and would cut the proposed net impact to Kennewick to about $2,880 in 2026. Holt said the COG’s reserves have grown since 2021 (from about $21,000 then to $500,000 today) but that the agency has incurred periodic net negative years on accrual accounting because indirect cost reimbursements lag expenses.

What’s next: Holt said the Tri‑Cities climate approach will be finalized in October 2025, the RTP update is expected for adoption in December 2026, and the COG will continue to discuss the proposed dues structure with member city managers and the COG board before any formal change.