Vancouver Transportation Benefit District

0:00 Welcome to the City of Vancouver Transportation Benefit District. This is May 18, 2026, it is 7.37, and Ms. Dollar, please call the roll. Director Harless. Present. Fox. Here. Paulson. Here. Stover. Here. Hanson. Present. Mayor McNerney-Ogle. Present. Thank you very much. I do not have anyone who is pre-registered for sign-ups. And we have the consent agenda, and we have items one, two. Items one and two. Is that it? Yes. For consent.

0:55 Council, would you like to pull any of those items? Paulson seconded by? Fox. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes. Thank you very much. We have public hearings. First one is a resolution of the Vancouver Transportation Benefit District amending the biennial work plan and biennial budget for the 2025-2026 biennium. Staff summary, please. Good evening. Ryan LaPosa, transportation manager for the city. Thank you for this opportunity to come before you this evening. This item is what we characterize as a cleanup of the Transportation Benefit District budget for both 2025 and 26. It's really an effort to align it with the results of the spring supplemental budget

1:52 that the city passed here within the last month or two. And so I can go through just a couple of the changes that were made, if that's the desire of council. And then if there's any questions, I'll field those. So for the '25 program, we made one change under the pavement management program. The original budget had a TBD allocation of 2.7 million. We actually corrected that to 1.6 million. For the Mill Plain MacArthur improvement project, the original TBD budget for '25 was 3.1 million. We corrected that to 2.4 million. For the 33rd Complete Streets project, the original budget for '25 was 675,000. We actually reduced this to 600,000 for '25.

2:49 And then when I get to the '26 program, we actually moved 75,000 for that project into '26. Moving on to the '26 program, again, a correction to the pavement management program instead of the 5.9 million that's shown in this proposed budget actually replaces 4.8 million that was in the original approved budget. For the Main Street Promise project, this was actually allocated in the '25 budget in the original approved budget. We've now moved it to the '26 budget. And really, it's just because of cash flow and how the funds are being spent as we move through the construction project. The Mill Plain MacArthur improvements, again, just moving that 700,000 forward from 2025 budget. And then finally, the 33rd Complete Streets project, we moved $75,000 from the '25 budget to the '26 budget.

3:48 And then the very end of the list of '26 projects, we added four new projects proposed for TBD funding in the spring supplemental. So we are here tonight to include those in the '26 budget. McGilvery Boulevard Complete Streets, we're proposing to add an additional 600,000 in TBD funds. That's reflective of our current cost estimates for construction. So we're just trying to align our budget with the estimates that we're now working with. The St. John's/St. James Complete Streets project, we wanted to add $200,000 to that project. It was what we characterize as a Complete Streets project. It was a what we would consider a walk-on project. It was added at the last minute due to a paving program. So we're going to use that $200,000 to do some mobility work on the corridor and improve

4:46 that corridor for both mobility and pedestrians. Another new project that we've been working on that we're proposing to add TBD dollars to is the Mill Plain and Thompson rail crossing. So that's the rail crossing on Mill Plain just to the west of the BNSF overpass right there at Thompson Road. We've partnered with the Port of Vancouver to reconstruct that crossing so that we can smooth out that surface and repair those damaged panels that are within that crossing. So we're proposing to add $700,000 in TBD funds to help fund that project. And then finally, our TBD fund does get audited from time to time, and so we are proposing a $20,000 allocation just to cover audit expenses for the TBD. So that's a recap of the proposed changes, and again, this really is just a true-up between the TBD and the city's current budget.

5:43 Councillors, do you have any questions of Mr. La Posa? Nope? All right. I'll entertain a motion. Paulson seconded by Hansen. Councillor, go ahead. Thank you. Mr. La Posa, really quickly, could you tell us what's the status of Montgomery? Again, Ryan La Posa, transportation manager for the city. We are in the final design phase of Montgomery. I believe we are at 90 or if not 95 percent design and are ready to start moving towards construction. I believe the plan is to issue call for bids later this year. I think the substantial portion of the work will occur in 2027, though we'll do the paving work and then we'll come back and do the final complete streets work. But yeah, we're getting very close.

6:40 It took quite a bit of time getting through some of the design elements and just working through those challenges. Mr. La Posa, give us an example, please, of a design element. In the case of Montgomery, we are repurposing a portion of the street to serve both as a mobility lane, but in some sections it will also be a place where pedestrians can walk because not all of Montgomery has sidewalks. And so we wanted to make sure that that space met all of the requirements for a pedestrian space. We're also looking at the intersection of Montgomery and 136th Avenue. We've been in contact with folks out there, including the school district, about some recent pedestrian-related collisions, and so we wanted to go back and take another look

7:35 at that intersection and see if we were doing everything we could to address those issues. But yeah, any time we're modifying an existing facility to do other things, that does add some challenge in the design phase, and so it does take some time for us to get through that. That intersection is already at a four-way stop. Are you thinking of something different? It will remain a four-way stop. And of course, because we are repurposing Montgomery so that it will only be one lane in each direction, it will be a much different kind of four-way stop than it is now. But we are proposing much larger signage in that area, and then if it becomes necessary, we may even consider some of the LED rimmed stop signs. I think one of the problems has been that there's just not enough attention paid to the fact that it is an all-way stop. Okay, thank you. I have a motion, yes, Councilor, go ahead.

8:33 Yes, you know, just given the issues that we've had with Montgomery there, do we have any type, Ryan, do we have any type of communication plan to bring along folks during the actual construction, just given the disruption, potential disruption that construction is going to have on folks there? Yeah, so with all of our projects, especially pavement projects and projects that have the potential to interrupt either, you know, any form of traffic, we do a very robust outreach process through our communications department. Once we have selected a contractor and we know the schedule for the work that they're going to be doing, we're going to take that information and we're going to package that into information that we put out to the community through a number of different venues, both

9:31 our social media platforms as well as putting information in postcards that get mailed out to folks along the corridor as well as folks within a certain distance of the corridor, leading up to actual work that could involve disruption to folks who live along the corridor in their driveways. Say, for example, the day that we pave, contractors will be going out and hanging door hangers ahead of time to let those residents know that that work will be occurring. So we really try hard, and with our pavement program, I think we do a really good job of letting folks know what's happening, when it's happening, what kind of things are happening, and more importantly or of equal importance, I would say, is who they can contact if they have any questions or concerns. I'm just wondering if there's something that we could do that's not status quo, that's

10:22 a little more relational engagement, communication with folks who are going to be directly impacted, and for us just to be prepared to hear from the public on those disruptions. Yeah. I mean, we can certainly talk to our communications team and see if there's something for this particular space that we could look at. We continue to hear from folks along the corridor. They know that the design is progressing. They know that the project is moving towards construction, so we continue to hear from folks. I've received several phone calls, and we have some folks who support the project. We have others that don't, and so we work through those conversations, but I'll sit down with our communications team and see if there's some unique approaches we could take for this one. Thank you.

11:17 They did a good job on main street, so maybe we have some strategies. Ms. Stoller, we don't have it on this documentation, but I'll open for public testimony. I don't have any cards. Is there anyone that wanted to testify on this? So I'll close the public testimony on it. We have a motion and a second. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes. Thank you. The second public hearing that we have this evening is a resolution of the Transportation Benefit District to issue an annual report for fiscal year 2025. Is that one yours also, Ryan? It happens to be, yes. So this is our annual report to the community that we publish each year, which provides the community a summary of how our street funding strategy and our transportation benefit

12:15 dollars are being spent. This is one of the many efforts that we use to maintain transparency with that program and to continue to promote the work that the street funding strategy and the TBD is funding. So this year's report is very similar to a report you've seen in the past. It is a discussion of our guiding principles and outcomes associated with the funding strategy. There's discussion of how much funding came in in 2025, the various sources of that fund, both what was estimated as well as what was actual, and then an outcome section on how those funds were spent and the different programs in which those funds were spent. We talk about different activities. There's a lot of talk about what we now call corridor projects, which we used to call those

13:14 complete streets projects. And so there's a section on page six that talks about some of the current corridor projects we're working on as well as some of the new ones that are coming up. We talk about, again, different programs that the TBD funds, our grant projects, our traffic calming program. We get into a little more detailed discussion specifically about the transportation benefit district. We talk a little bit about the board who is here before us this evening. We talk about the revenues, the expenditures, and again, specific to the TBD. I'll go over -- there is one proposed change to the report that we'd like to talk about this evening. So I'll go over that in a second.

14:05 And then finally, on page 11, there's just a discussion of the different types of -- all the different projects that are funded with the TBD. And as you can see, that's a pretty extensive list. And this is the same list of projects that I spoke of in the last public hearing. So very happy to report all the different -- all the work that's happening with both the overall funding as well as the TBD as a whole. The one section that we'd like to consider -- and I'll just share with council what's being discussed. So on page 10 at the bottom, there's a conversation about look ahead for 2026. And that first paragraph talks about the change that was made to the license fee when it went

15:02 from $40 to $50. Director Fox reached out to us, and that was a little bit confusing because it talks a lot about what we did when that fee was changed, and under the caption of, well, it's a look ahead for 2026. So we've worked on some revised language that we would propose that we would change this paragraph to reflect that. And so I can -- and I don't know if this language is available to you or not. I can certainly read it if -- >> Go ahead. >> -- you would like. >> You bet. >> So in lieu of the first paragraph, what we would say instead is the transportation benefit district increased the vehicle license fee from $40 to $50 in summer 2025. The fee increase was expected to generate an additional $1.3 million annually to support

16:00 transportation projects within the city limits. Through April 2026, fee collections are coming in as anticipated and are on track to fully support the 2026 work plan. Staff will continue to monitor revenues as a full year of collections becomes available to help guide future planning and keep projects moving forward. >> All right. Councillors, do you have any concerns what Mr. LaPosa just submitted? >> No. >> No? >> No. >> Sounds good. >> No? Okay. Ryan, you got a thumbs up on that? Any other part of your report? >> The other thing I would also mention is I do an awful -- I spend an awful lot of time, maybe more than I should, in looking at other agencies in Washington who have TBDs and what they do with those programs, including their annual reports. And I am very happy to report that this annual report really stands out far above all others.

16:59 You know, some of our fellow agencies of equal size and stature produce a one-pager that basically is a spreadsheet of this is what we got and this is how we spent it. And I really feel like we have taken several extra steps in showcasing what it is we do with these funds and what is happening in our community. And I think that's important. It's an important reminder to our community of how we're utilizing these funds that have been provided to us. >> So you two need to take this to state conferences and put on workshops so you, too, can bring a plaque home. >> Amongst the many others, I already have, yes. >> Thank you for funding it. Okay. Any other questions of Mr. La Posa on the annual report? >> Yes, ma'am. >> Yes, councilor. Go ahead. >> Assemblymember Ty Stober or Director Ty Stober, I think, is actually correct for this

17:58 meeting. Mr. La Posa, it talks about our current pavement condition index, PCI, of being 73. So first, let's say this is year 10, right? So this is year 10, so we need to have some big party or something and have a decade-long retrospective in the next one. So year 10, that's a long time. In my mind is that we had set a goal of a PCI of 80 way back when. And 73 is somewhat close. Are we getting closer to that original goal? Are we just maintaining?

18:57 >> In your mind. I don't know that 80 was ever a number we were looking at. What we defined our PCI, the goal for our PCI, I believe, was a -- I want to characterize it as a medium to -- a fair to medium condition. And I'll need to go back. There's words that were used as opposed to numbers. My recollection of the PCI for the city when we started this journey 10 years ago, I believe, was right around 63 or 64. And it has trended upward in those years. That curve has flattened, though. We did -- we stalled a bit during the pandemic because we essentially suspended all pavement work that year just due to the unknown in terms of what costs might come in as a result of the pandemic. So that was one of the areas that we paused.

19:56 But because the cost of doing pavement work has increased so dramatically and far outpaced the revenues, we are -- we're not able to keep that PCI increasing as quickly as we would like to see. So it's a very gradual increase right now. And if we want to move it, you know, closer to, say, an 80 or something like that, we'll definitely have to have some conversations about what it would take to do that. >> I think it would be good as part of this decade retrospective to just help tell that story of where we were, where we are now. And a PCI of 73 is definitely something -- and again, this is a citywide average PCI, Pavement Condition Index.

20:53 And that's a very good Pavement Condition Index for that many lane miles of streets that we have in the city. There's still plenty of work to do. And the real challenge will be to get to a place where we want to be and to keep it there. So yes, I agree. I would love to spend a little time reflecting on the accomplishments that we've made over the last decade and then talk about, you know, what the next 10 years has in store for us. >> Yeah. So starting with what did we say 10 years ago, where are we at now, where are we going? Thank you. >> Thank you. Any other comments? I'll open the public hearing. No cards. Close the public hearing. I'll entertain a motion. >> Mayor, I move to approve the transportation -- what are we calling this -- annual report

21:50 to the community with the amendments as read into the record. >> Thank you. Seconded by? >> Councilmember Stauber. >> Stauber. All right. Thank you. All those in favor say aye. >> Aye. >> Opposed? Motion passes. Thank you, Mr. La Posa. >> Thank you. >> It is 759. We are adjourned.