Port of Centralia Executive Director Kyle Heaton speaks at a Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce Forum in 2019.
Progress on the Interstate 5/Mellen Street Connector project has been put on hold until next year due to the disruptions of COVID-19, said Port of Centralia Executive Director Kyle Heaton.
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is unable to approve or start scheduling projects until the state hits phase three of reopening in Gov. Jay Inslee’s Safe Start Washington plan, Heaton said.
The Interstate 5/Mellen Street Connector project has been in the works for about the last seven years. The project includes a new off-ramp extensions of existing streets.
The project will construct a ramp from the existing Mellen Street overpass heading east and will connect with Yew Street and serve the port’s proposed Centralia Station project. In September 2019, the port announced WinCo foods would be the anchor tenant for Centralia Station.
At this point, with all of the uncertainties that accompany the COVID-19 crisis, Heaton said that realistically the Port of Centralia will go to bid for its portion of the project in early 2021 and most likely award a bid by April of 2021.
“Construction in 2020 has come and gone. Once the state progresses into stage three and it’s safe for the DOT to get back to work we are looking forward to sitting down with them and trying to find out ‘what is the new project schedule?’,” said Heaton.
Heaton said that the Port of Centralia is very aware that there will be a hole in the state budget next year due to the COVID-19 crisis.
“What will the Department of Transportation’s budget look like next year? Is the project still funded? As of now, it is but until the legislature and the governor get together and figure out how they’re going to pay for everything we won’t know for sure,” said Heaton.
In 2018, the Washington state Legislature earmarked $3.1 million for the construction of the ramp.
