MISSOULA — Over the past few years, the Missoula metropolitan area has secured its share of federal funding that will propel several large transportation projects from design to construction in the coming years.
The funding has included $25 million for the Downtown Safety and Mobility Project, $24 million to address the Highway 200 corridor through East Missoula, and roughly $10 million to transform a stretch of South Avenue into a “complete street.”
Now, the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee is looking to prioritize future projects as it gears up to seek a new round of federal funding.
“Those are three big projects we've checked off this list,” said Arron Wilson, the city's transportation manager. “This is now a good opportunity for us to take a minute and talk about what our next priorities might be.”
With so many needs on the table and so little funding, focusing on that next big capital project isn't easy. But members of the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee aren't short on ideas.
Among them, officials could seek federal funding to complete the city's entire network of non-motorized trails. That would include the Milwaukee Trail in the Mullan area and a Northside trail running from Reserve Street to Scott Street, among others.
While such a proposal could find success in its “uniqueness,” city officials said other transportation needs are looming, including the completion of Russell Street. The cost of the project is consuming the vast majority of Missoula's local transportation funds, which could be redirected toward other projects if a federal grant were received.
The city also plans to convert Brooks Street into a rapid-transit corridor with pedestrian improvements at key locations. While the project isn't yet ready for a grant, other proposals in the Midtown area are close and could benefit from federal support.
Among them, the city is conducting due diligence on roughly10 acres of land behind Bob Wards. The city may purchase the property and develop it in partnership with the private sector, not unlike the Scott Street housing project on the Northside. Once finished, it will deliver more than 70 units of income-restricted housing.
“The property behind Bob Wards is similar in nature but not in scale to what we're looking at in the Scott Street area in that there's basically no infrastructure,” said Ellen Buchanan, director of the Missoula Redevelopment Agency. “Both of those are good candidates for a RAISE planning grant as opposed to a capital grant.”
The city could also look at applying for a grant to fund current and future needs in the North Reserve and Scott Street areas. Among them, the city is looking to extend Howard Raser Drive, make improvements to Scott Street, plan a future I-90 interchange and reuse the Roseburg property.
“There's lots of potential and need up there,” said Wilson. “With the development on the Northside and the closing of the Roseburg plant, there's some potential uncertainty but also some opportunities in thinking about what happens there to boost some economic activity and replace that facility.”
While the needs exist, projects must be firm to compete for federal funding, officials said.
“I think there's still some big questions around Roseburg and the Northside we haven't really resolved yet,” said Public Works Director Jeremy Keene. “That would make it hard to write a grant right now.”
The greater Mullan area also has unfinished needs, committee members noted. While the city and county received a $13 million federal grant several years ago to fund a majority of the area's transportation needs, some projects remain unfunded and unfinished.
That includes the extension of George Elmer Drive to West Broadway. Mountain Line is looking to place its new bus facility in that area and development pressure is also building.
“The developer there is really eager to see us finish that north leg,” said Keene. “But it's a chicken-and-egg thing where development really needs to lead that. Trying to figure out how to fund the rest of that would be a good thing to think about.”
The Transportation Technical Advisory Committee this month agreed to begin the consulting process as it considers what project to prioritize before seeking a federal grant.
“In three of four years, we've made significant progress on a lot of major projects,” said Wilson. “The question now, do we want to pursue a (federal) grant and if so, what are the priorities for what we might want to apply for.”
