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Quartzsite council approves application for $25 million USDOT discretionary grant for I‑10 Exit 17 interchange
Summary
The Quartzsite Town Council voted to approve Resolution No. 26‑01 authorizing staff to apply for a $25 million USDOT discretionary grant to address a longstanding bottleneck at I‑10 Exit 17 and authorized the assistant town manager to sign the grant offer and acceptance form.
The Quartzsite Town Council voted to authorize staff to apply for a $25 million U.S. Department of Transportation discretionary grant for improvements to the I‑10 Exit 17 interchange and approved a resolution allowing the assistant town manager to sign the offer and acceptance form.
Town staff told the council the interchange has been “undersized for a long time,” that the current single bridge is “too low” for some high‑load vehicles and that the geometry creates a traffic bottleneck. Staff said the town previously secured a $3,500,000 state grant for final design work and reached the 30% design stage in November. “Wewere hoping to have a report for you as early as tonight, but we'll probably not have that report until your next meeting,” the staff member said.
The staff presentation said the solicitation allows a maximum $25,000,000 award and emphasized the application deadline window is short; the staff member added the town does not have to commit to all future construction funding now but must demonstrate how it would secure additional dollars if the grant is awarded. The same staff member described the full project cost as being proposed at around “$5,051,000,000” during the meeting; the council did not independently verify that figure during discussion.
Councilors asked about next steps and public engagement; staff said the Arizona Department of Transportation and the engineering firm will hold public meetings in March (one at council chambers and another at the QIA) to present what is being proposed. The staff member also said Assistant (designated) staff member Kiki Tannell will serve as the contact for application paperwork and information requests, but will not be the ongoing grant coordinator.
Vice Mayor moved to approve Resolution No. 26‑01, which the council seconded and adopted by voice vote. The resolution authorizes town staff to submit the USDOT discretionary application for the I‑10 Exit 17 interchange project and authorizes the assistant town manager to sign the grant offer and acceptance form if the award is made. The council did not record individual roll‑call vote tallies in the transcript; the mayor announced the motion carried.
The town will hold public outreach when ADOT and consultants finalize materials, and staff said a more detailed project report and timeline will be provided at a future council meeting.
