Council and staff split on Franklin Corridor costs as geobond funds steer Midtown Crossing work

Bend city staff and councilors on June 18 continued a months‑long discussion over how much of the Midtown Crossing budget should be spent rebuilding Franklin Avenue, a key east‑west corridor that city leaders say must be upgraded to complete the Bend bikeway network and to connect to the federally funded Hawthorne Bridge.

City engineering staff presented a progress update on a design‑build contract for Franklin Avenue between Harriman and Eighth Street. The work is split into packages. Staff recommended moving a lower‑impact segment (Fourth to Eighth Street) forward to construction this fall under an upcoming guaranteed maximum price (GMP 3) and postponing the more complex western segment (Harriman to Fourth, GMP 4) for either later construction or value‑engineering. The more complex section involves a railroad undercrossing with constrained space, and engineers said constructing drainage and new curb/wall alignment there would require a 5–6 month complete closure of the underpass in order to finish the work safely and on time.

City staff also presented an updated budget. The Midtown Crossing geobond allocation originally included funding for Greenwood, Hawthorne, and Franklin corridors; Greenwood work is complete as a quick‑build. After the federal grant made Hawthorne Bridge construction feasible, staff said much of the…