After looking at seven options, Washington State Department of Transportation officials have focused on two ideas for improving the state Highway 14 corridor through Washougal.
Both of the options would add two roundabouts, one at 15th Street and another at 32nd Street. The difference is that one option also adds ramps at 27th Street.
WSDOT officials held an open house in October and conducted an online survey to get public opinion about different design ideas, although the public vision for improving the corridor didn’t always line up.
“A lot of people at the open house and survey said they didn’t want roundabouts, but they also said they wanted reliable travel and safe access,” said Tamara Greenwell, a WSDOT spokeswoman. “The way to do that is with roundabouts.”
If You Go
• When: 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday.
• Where: Port of Camas-Washougal, 24 S. A St., Washougal.
• What: Washington State Department of Transportation open house on possible improvements along the state Highway 14 corridor through Washougal.
The department will host another open house on Wednesday to get more public input. In the online survey, 78 percent of the 443 respondents said they want improved safety along the corridor.
Community livability, the second-most desirable factor, appeared in 72 percent of surveys. Construction staging/phasing was listed on 47 percent. Forty percent of the surveys listed economic development opportunities.
Rounding out the list were: minimizing environmental impacts, reducing maintenance needs, reflecting community identity and public support.
The project has a $7.5 million budget for design and construction, according to Brad Clark, design team leader for WSDOT. He added that he thinks the roundabouts will most likely cost somewhere in the $5.5 million to $6 million range to build, with the rest of the budget going to design.
The problem with the 27th Street option is that the ramps aren’t currently funded. According to information sent out by WSDOT on the project, the option with two roundabouts and ramps would cost $20 million. Greenwell said that if WSDOT chooses that option, it will most likely have to come back and do the ramps at a later time.
Greenwell said the idea for the corridor is to make it safer but also help improve the region’s economic vitality by making easier access for freight to move to and from the Port of Camas-Washougal.
She also said the designers have looked at traffic projections for the next two decades to ensure whatever option is constructed will best serve the current and future states of a growing Washougal.
Construction is expected to start in summer 2019 and last four to six months, Clark said.
