SALEM — The Oregon Transportation Commission approved $46 million in new funding for multimodal transportation projects at their May meeting. The funding is part of Connect Oregon, an initiative established by the 2005 state legislature to invest in non-highway modes of transportation.
For this current round of Connect Oregon grants, ODOT originally received 51 applications for funding. The projects went through a rigorous, multi-step review process. The review process included evaluations by ODOT staff, ODOT economists and Business Oregon Regional Development officers, Regional Solutions Teams, statewide modal committees, Area Commissions on Transportation, and the final review committee.
ODOT ranked the projects based on a number of factors:
- Access to jobs/labor
- Reduced transportation costs
- Economic benefits to state
- Critical link for system
- Readiness
- Required match
- Useful life
- Proximity to mining aggregate
- Geographic mix
- Equity
- Climate/GHG impacts
The 21 projects that ODOT is funding are:
| APPLICANT | PROJECT NAME | TOTAL PROJECT COSTS | CONNECT OREGON GRANT FUNDS REQUESTED |
| Dominguez Family Enterprises | Juanita’s Fine Foods Track Replacement | $400,000 | $276,000 |
| Jackson County | Medford Airport East Side Heavy Duty Aircraft Apron Expansion | $12,050,000 | $2,500,000 |
| City of Eugene | Eugene Airport – Widening Taxiways Juliet and Lima to Air Cargo Apron | $2,000,000 | $1,400,000 |
| Wyoming Colorado Railroad Inc. | Oregon Eastern Railroad 286K Upgrade Phase 2 | $1,693,931 | $999,300 |
| City of Bend | Bend Air Traffic Control Tower (Design and Construction) | $7,500,000 | $4,875,000 |
| Pacific Recycling | Pacific Recycling Spur Track Expansion | $1,335,000 | $737,000 |
| Lake County | Lake County Rail Replacement | $1,294,000 | $892,860 |
| Port of Portland | Terminal 6 Berth 607 Container Capacity Expansion Project | $10,533.963 | $7,374,000 |
| Teevin Bros Land & Timber Co LLC | Teevin Westport Multimodal Terminal Siding | $1,634,115 | $1,100,000 |
| City of Corvallis | Corvallis Airport Runway 17-3 Rehabilitation and Lighting | $4,000,000 | $375,308 |
| City of Klamath Falls | Klamath Falls Regional Airport Reconstruct Runway 7-25 | $10,826,000 | $550,000 |
| City of Port Orford | Port of Port Orford Crane Replacement | $2,313,656 | $1,619,559 |
| Coos County Airport District | eVTOL Cargo and Pacific Northwest Seafood Transfer Facility | $9,826,000 | $3,000,000 |
| Colombia Rail | Milton-Freewater Area Shortline Customer Track Expansions | $989,000 | $692,300 |
| City of Creswell | Creswell Airport Runway 16-34 Reconstruction and Lighting Replacement | $4,692,000 | $250,000 |
| Hyak Tongue Point, LLC | Hyak Tongue Point 1500 Metric Ton Mobile Lift Project | $21,061,758 | $13,900,000 |
| Morrow County Grain Processors | Boardman Rail Transloading Facility Grain Storage | $3,000,000 | $2,100,000 |
| Hampton Lumber Sales | Hampton Lumber Sales Track Expansion | $221,900 | $155,330 |
| Grant County | Grant County Regional Airport Widen and Rehab Runway 17-35 | $7,277,778 | $727,778 |
| Oregon Department of Aviation | Prospect State Airport – Runway Reconstruction and Electrical Improvements | $2,490,000 | $1,693,200 |
| Union County | Union County Airport Fuel and Maintenance Facility Improvements | $1,400,000 | $980,000 |
“I appreciate the work that’s gone into this,” said Commission Chair Bob Van Brocklin. “There have been a lot of stages, a lot of communication, and a lot of opportunities to be heard.”
For the six previous rounds of Connect Oregon funding, the OTC funded 221 projects, with a total leverage of non-Connect Oregon funds of $605 million. All but five of those projects are complete, with the remaining projects at various stages of design and construction.
Multimodal investments are a key part of ODOT’s Strategic Action Plan, which lays out priorities and goals for the next several years. Information about the Connect Oregon program is available on the program website.
