East Fifth Street Rehabilitation Project

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The rehabilitation of East Fifth Street from River Street to Wynooski Street (four blocks) in Newberg, Oregon is one of the first pavement maintenance projects funded by a transportation utility fee (TUF) adopted by the City Council in May 2017. The City had already planned to replace a wastewater line along the route and decided to coordinate reconstruction of the street with that project. The street had been rated in poor condition and included sidewalks and curbs below standard. Reconstruction involved removal of existing pavement, over-grading the subgrade, and installation of nine inches of crushed rock over the base. The new three-inch thick asphalt surface is an improvement over the prior two-inch surface atop four inches of loosely placed rock. The project included new catch basins and reconstructed sidewalk ramps that meet current ADA standards. A 2015 funding analysis had shown a significant shortfall to properly maintain pavement condition city-wide and increase overall pavement condition index that had been decreasing in recent years. By 2016, available annual revenues of $600,000 from existing state gas tax receipts and federal funds exchange fell far short of the projected $2.5 million needed. In response, the City adopted a TUF to generate an estimated $1.2 million annually to help close the $1.9 million gap. The City settled upon a "variable fee within class" rate model, with three residential (35% of revenues) and six non-residential (65% of revenues) rate classes. The revenue allocation allows a maximum of 70% to go toward preservation of streets rated in good to fair condition, and a minimum of 30% to reconstruct streets rated in poor to very poor condition.

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