The City is excited to receive two grants for upcoming projects. The first grant award will fund pavement overlay work on West Whidbey Avenue between SW Jib Street and Oak Harbor Street by providing grant funding for $485,297 of the overall $570,938 estimated project costs. The second grant award is for significant improvements to NE 7th Avenue near Ellis Street. The grant will fund $837,185 of the total $2,040,000 estimated project costs.
The TIB funds high-priority transportation projects in communities throughout the state to enhance the movement of people, goods, and services. The grant application is very competitive, with 308 applicants from various Washington cities and counties with more than 247 million dollars in project requests. As a result, only 126 million dollars in awards were selected for funding. You can learn more about the TIB program at www.tib.wa.gov/tibinfo/newsitem.cfm?stid-378.
This is the first time the City has received a grant from the State’s Arterial Preservation Program (APP). The last time the City received a grant from the Urban Arterial Program (UAP) was in 2006.
City Administrator Blaine Oborn said, “Grant applications like this highlight the partnership between our Public Works and Finance Departments. It also shows the benefit of hiring Grant Coordinator Wendy Horn because she utilizes her expertise to assist our staff in identifying opportunities and creating competitive applications for grant opportunities. It is a huge win for our staff and the community. Great work, City of Oak Harbor staff!”
You will learn more about these projects from the Public Works Engineering Division and updates about grant funding and processes from the Grant Coordinator at future City Council meetings.