Building trades lobby in support of ConnectOregon V
SALEM — Oregon building trades
unions were well represented at a July
17 public hearing conducted by the
Oregon Transportation Commission
in regard to project recommendations
for ConnectOregon V.
ConnectOregon is a lottery-bond-
based initiative first approved by the
Oregon Legislature in 2005 to im-
prove transportation connections
(other than highway and bridge work)
by investing in air, rail, marine/ports
and transit infrastructure. It is over-
seen by the Oregon Department of
Transportation (ODOT).
In the previous four rounds, the
Legislature approved $340 million to
fund 146 projects. That investment
leveraged approximately $499 million
of non-ConnectOregon funds and cre-
ated thousands of construction jobs
throughout the state.
In 2013, the Oregon Legislature
approved a fifth authorization of $42
million for ConnectOregon. That leg-
islation includes for the first time bi-
cycle/ pedestrian projects as also eligi-
ble for funding.
ODOT received 104 applications
seeking $124 million in funding. After
a lengthy review process by regional
committees, in June the list was nar-
rowed down to 37 projects and for-
warded to the Oregon Transportation
Commission. The commission will
make a final decision regarding proj-
ect funding at its Aug. 21-22 meeting
in Ontario, Oregon.
Three projects that made the short
list stirred up environmental groups,
who say the projects will make it eas-
ier to transport coal and oil through
the state. Environmental groups
turned out a large contingent to the
public hearing to argue against the
projects. They were countered by a
similarly large group of members
from construction unions and others
who spoke for the need of more fam-
ily-wage jobs. The three contested
projects are:
• The Port of St. Helens applied for
a $2 million grant to be used to re-
build Berth 2-Beaver Dock at Port
Westward on the Columbia River. The
dock is owned by the Port and will
continue to be operated as a common-
user port facility. The ConnectOregon
grant will leverage an additional $3
million from Pacific Transloading
LLC. The Ambre Energy subsidiary
has entered into a terminal services
option with the Port for non-exclusive
use of the dock. The Australian com-
pany is seeking permits to ship coal
from the Powder River Basin in
Wyoming and Montana to Asia. Am-
bre has a memorandum of under-
Russ Garnett, business manager of Roofers Local 49, talks to State Rep. Brad
Witt in the hallway of the Salem Convention Center, site of a public hearing
by the Oregon Transportation Commission regarding ConnectOregon V
project funding recommendations.
standing with the Columbia Pacific
Building and Construction Trades
Council to perform all the work with
union labor. PGE also has rights to the
dock, and Columbia Pacific Bio-Re-
finery, an existing Port tenant, also
uses the dock to ship liquid bulk com-
modities by barge. This project will
enable additional uses and users of the
dock that require mooring deep-draft
vessels.
• The Port of St. Helens applied for
a second grant, also for $2 million.
The project will expand the berthing
capabilities of the Port Westward dock
by constructing new mooring and in-
stalling pipeline rack supports. The
improvements will extend the dock
and create a berth (named Berth 1) ca-
pable of handling deep-draft Panamax
tankers. The grant will leverage an ad-
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ditional $4,623,000 from Columbia
Pacific Bio-Refinery.
• The City of Rainier applied for
nearly $3 million to reconstruct a por-
tion of rail facilities where track runs
down the middle of “A” Street in the
City of Rainier. The project will im-
prove safety by providing roadway-
track separations, closing existing
crossings, and upgrading remaining
crossings and signaling. The grant
will leverage an additional $2,294,566
from Portland & Western Railroad,
the City of Rainier, ODOT Rail Divi-
sion, and Oregon Regional Solutions.
In testimony before the Oregon
Transportation Commission in sup-
port of the “A” Street safety project,
State Rep. Brad Witt (D-Dist. 31)
urged commissioners to judge the va-
lidity of each of the projects on their
own merits.
“Many of my constituents have
voiced opposition to the projects
based solely on the likely end-users of
these facilities,” said Witt, who is a
union rep for United Food and Com-
mercial Workers Local 555. “An im-
proved dock facility is every bit as ca-
pable of enhancing the export of
Oregon wines, green-certified Oregon
wood products or Oregon-grown
fruits, vegetables and meat products
— along with a host of Oregon com-
modities, as it would be for coal.”
Several other elected officials, in-
cluding Sen. Betsy Johnson (D-Scap-
poose), whose district includes the
port, and Columbia County Commis-
sioner Tony Hyde, also spoke in favor
of the projects.
Other projects on the recom-
mended list include money for a
TriMet west side bike and ride; for
Terminal 6 at the Port of Portland; for
runway improvements at Redmond
Airport; and for a bicycle-pedestrian
bridge and a Franklin Blvd.transit sta-
tion for Lane Transit District in Eu-
gene.
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