Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transportation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Coos Bay council pauses Front Street–Mingus Park bike-path design amid funding and ODOT questions
Summary
Staff presented design and construction estimates for a Front Street–Mingus Park bike path — roughly $98,000 for design and $360,000 for construction — but council agreed to pause pursuing design work while waiting to see what ODOT proposes and to fold the item into a broader bike-plan discussion.
The Coos Bay City Council heard detailed cost estimates for a proposed bike and pedestrian connection from Front Street to Mingus Park and decided to pause authorizing design spending while coordinating with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT).
Staff briefed council members that design costs were estimated in the neighborhood of $90,000–$98,000 and that construction to build the crossing and path could total roughly $360,000. The staff presentation said some of those line items came from prior ODOT design work for a crossing at Market Street and from local contractor estimates on comparable projects. "The costs are, I think, are pretty good close estimates of, what the cost to install it would be," a staff presenter said.
City Manager Nicole said fund 45 — the city's bike-and-ped fund derived from a gas-tax percentage — is small and slow-growing; staff recommended pausing because ODOT is considering corridor revisions and might contribute to crossing improvements. "They brought 4 members of their team here this week," Nicole said of ODOT engagement, and she recommended waiting for ODOT's near-term work before expending the city’s limited design dollars.
Councilors debated the trade-offs: some argued the Front Street crossing needs work now and expressed impatience with delay, while others said waiting could let the city pursue a larger, coordinated plan and possibly leverage ODOT funding. One councilor proposed placing the bike-path project on the council’s biennial goal-setting list so it is not forgotten.
No formal vote to approve design work or to expend the $98,000 was taken; council direction was to pause further spending and to revisit the project after seeing ODOT’s proposals and completing higher-level planning.
What happens next: staff will monitor ODOT's forthcoming work, include the project in budget/goal-setting discussions and return with a recommendation once coordination possibilities and fund availability are clearer.
