An October aerial view of the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex, one of several local projects receiving funds from the recently-passed state 2017-2019 capital budget.
The Washington Legislature finally passed its 2017-2019 capital projects budget Jan. 18 with local impacts in the millions of dollars.
The $4.2 billion budget was initially expected to pass last year but was held up over disputes on a state Supreme Court decision regarding water rights. The Hirst decision as it is known was a sticking point between parties, with Democrats offering a temporary “fix” of the decision while Republicans demanded a permanent adjustment.
Due to the Hirst ruling developments across the state have been held up due to a stipulation regarding the drilling of water wells on properties. On Jan. 18 a bill designed to fix that issue passed the Legislature.
The Washington Newspaper Publishing Association Olympia News Bureau has reported that the approved legislation allows for limited drilling of new wells, each of which would require a $500 fee from landowners. The bill also limits water withdrawals in new wells to 3,000 gallons per day in less crowded areas, compared to 950 gallons per day in watersheds that are densely populated. Local work groups will work with the Department of Ecology to establish water-use guidelines for the next 20 years.
The bill passed in the Senate with a 35-14 vote, before immediately making its way to the House, which passed it 66-30, the WNPA reported.
With Hirst deemed “fixed” by the Legislature the capital budget was free to pass, allowing for held-up funding to finally reach projects around the state.
Several local legislators issued reaction statements on the passing of the budget. Rep. Liz Pike, R-Camas, noted some of the bigger projects in Clark County, including $10 million going to the extension of Northeast 10th Avenue in the county as well as $250,000 to finish a maintenance facility for the steam locomotives of the Chelatchie Prairie Railroad.
Rep. Vicki Kraft, R-Vancouver, also mentioned some project funding in her 17th Legislative District, including $3 million for the DayBreak Youth Center for Adolescent Recovery, $500,000 for the predesign of a life sciences building at WSU Vancouver and $167,000 for capacity upgrades at Sea-Mar Dental Clinic.
Outside of Clark County, according to state information the budget also included funding for the Scott Hill Park and Sports Complex in Woodland to the tune of $750.000. Representing Woodland in the 20th Legislative District, state Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia, spoke about the $1 billion going to the state School Construction Assistance Program (SCAP).
“Providing more classrooms will help schools implement our investments in reducing the class size for students in kindergarten through third grade,” Braun stated in the release. “While we’ve allocated money to pay for the operational costs, it’s clear some districts need assistance building new schools or expanding existing buildings.”
Braun’s comments rang true for a school district to the south of his jurisdiction, as the Ridgefield School District will receive millions in SCAP funding — an estimated $20 million for capital projects that broke ground last year.
“We are thrilled to finally see a capital budget in place,” RSD Superintendent Nathan McCann wrote in a statement.
He mentioned the parts of the overall roughly $100 million “Phase 2” of the district’s overall capital projects timeline that the funds would be used for: an expansion at the high school, safety and security upgrades at the elementary schools and the repurposing of View Ridge Middle School.
“A passed capital budget, and the associated funding from the state's School Construction Assistance Program, was critical to ensure the successful completion of these vital projects,” McCann remarked.
Last year when the legislative session closed without a budget McCann said that the biggest part of Phase 2, a new fifth- through eighth-grade campus, would still be able to be complete without the state funding, though not the construction previously mentioned.
Another project that the district has been involved in will also receive capital funds, as the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex will receive $750,000 through the budget. The complex came to be through a partnership between the district and the city of Ridgefield and is under construction next to the intermediate-grade campus also currently undergoing work.
Ridgefield’s projects aren’t the only education-associated construction in North County affected by the budget’s passing. Clark College will also see millions in funding from the budget allowing for some significant projects to move forward.
Clark College Chief Information Officer Chato Hazelbaker said the budget’s passing was “good news” for the community for two reasons when it came to the higher learning institution. There is $4 million allotted for maintenance of the college’s facilities, funds Hazelbaker said they rely on a day-to-day basis.
On top of maintenance funds, roughly $5.2 million is earmarked for the planning and design of the first facility on the planned “Clark College at Boschma Farms” north satellite campus in Ridgefield east of Interstate 5. The planning is for the first of six 70,000-square-foot buildings as part of a long-range campus development project spanning about 40 years.
“This is the critical first step in the process, and we were glad to get broad legislative support in the district,” Hazelbaker wrote in an email, adding with the approval it sets the college up for subsequent requests in the coming biennia to keep the project moving.
