Western Gateway design funded

The City of Shelton will pay consultant an additional $100,000 to finish the design for the city's Western Gateway Project on Railroad Avenue from Eighth Street west to the city limits.

The Shelton City Council on Oct. 19 voted unanimously to make its third supplemental change in its agreement with Gray & Osborne to complete the design. That brings the total to $306,500, and extends the contract to April 20, 2022.

"Western Gateway is our big street project for 2022," Public Works Director Jay Harris told the council.

The project includes restoring the existing roadway surfaces with an asphalt overlay; removing existing sidewalks and replacing them with new sidewalks with American with Disabilities Act-compliant curb ramps at the intersections of Railroad Avenue; and installing new sidewalks.

Curb and gutters will be installed at all intersections to ensure stormwater will be conveyed to the stormwater collection system. New pipes and catch basins also will be installed.

In a separate project by the city, water mains will be replaced before the asphalt is laid down.

"No one likes to see a road dug up after it's paved," Harris said.

The project will go out to bid before mid-January, said Ken Gill, the city's engineer.

At the Oct. 19 meeting, no one spoke during the public hearing.

In June 2018, the council approved a $35,000 contract with Gray & Osborne to make a design to be used to apply for funding, when the Western Gateway Project was known as Access Shelton IV, West Downtown. The city received two state Transportation Improvement Board grants, one an Arterial Preservation Program Grant and a Sidewalk Grant.

In May 2019, the council authorized an additional $171,000 to be spent on the design.

When the city hosted public meetings on the project, residents said they wanted it expended to align with the new Downtown Visioning Plan, according to the city report. Simpson Timber Co. discussed dedicating its railroad right-of-way to the city. This prompted the city to change the initial design concept. In June 2020, the city extended the contract with the Gray & Osborne to Dec. 31, 2021 to meet those changes.

The city reports staff could not find additional funding for the expanded project. Tuesday's action added $100,000 to complete a reduced design, and gives the contractor until April 20, 2022. Construction is expected to begin next year.