Initial construction of the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project is scheduled to begin next month despite the recent loss of $412.5 million in federal funding.

The Oregon Transportation Commission on Thursday authorized the estimated $75 million phase 1A to proceed. Construction is scheduled to begin on Aug. 25 and continue through fall 2026. That work will primarily be deferred maintenance and stormwater management. It will involve performing bridge rail retrofits, constructing stormwater treatment facilities for highway runoff to the Willamette River, handling roadway asphalt paving and lighting, installing signage and pavement markings, and building the southern portion of the southbound auxiliary lane between Interstate 84 and the Morrison Bridge.

Phase 1 is currently expected to cost around $549.75 million. Last year, the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) received a $450 million Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods grant from the Federal Highway Administration. To date, $37.5 million has been obligated for preliminary engineering of phase 1 and relocating utilities. But the remaining $412.5 million was rescinded as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law by President Trump earlier this month.

Approximately $146.8 million has been spent on the project to this point. Currently, there is around $303.1 million available, and that is expected to pay for professional engineering services tied to phase 1 ($51.3 million), property acquisition to gain right-of-way for phase 1 ($30.3 million), utility relocation for phase 1 ($9 million), all work in phase 1A ($75 million), and other phase 1 construction ($137.5 million).

The commission on Thursday authorized ODOT to continue design of phase 1. The work will involve building the southern portion of the highway cover (30 percent of the cover length) and multimodal improvements, completing the southbound auxiliary lane and shoulder from Interstate 405 to the Morrison Bridge exit, extending the northbound auxiliary lane and shoulder under the highway cover, installing signage for highway cover safety and construction, and widening Holladay/Hassalo Bridge, according to the project’s website. Construction is expected to start in early 2027 and finish in 2030.

Travis Brouwer, ODOT assistant director of revenue, finance and compliance, said the agency has enough money to complete phase 1A but not phase 1. There is $137.5 million available for phase 1, but construction of the highway cover is expected to cost from $400 million to $500 million. The $137.5 million will pay for construction of the northbound I-5 auxiliary lane between I-84 and the Weidler Road ramp.

The commission considered the option of pausing construction of phase 1A and seeing if funding will be made available for phase 1 by the Oregon Legislature but ultimately decided to move forward after weighing risks such as cost increases due to delays and possible lost revenue.

As part of Thursday’s action, ODOT will continue assessing cost reduction concepts to bring the total project budget within the $1.5 billion to $1.9 billion range.

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Project name: Linwood Corridor Improvements

Location: Milwaukie

Completion: April 2024

Cost: $10.8 million

Owners: Clackamas County, City of Milwaukie

Engineer: Harper Houf Peterson Righellis

General Contractors: D&D Concrete and Utilities, MEI Group

Submitting Company: Harper Houf Peterson Righellis

Other Associates/Key Consultants: Archaeological Investigations NW, DKS Associates, Epic Land Solutions, GeoDesign (NV5)

Subcontractors: D&D Concrete and Utilities: NAL Landscaping, Prairie Electric, S2 Contractors. Subcontractors: MEI Group: A+ Flagging, Aaken, American Concrete, Andres Landscape, Arck Construction, Auden Construction, Brothers Concrete Cutting, C&C Flagging, Carlson Testing, Coral Construction, Curtis Heintz Excavating, Cutter Construction, D&D Concrete and Utilities, Drain-Pro, Hicks Striping & Curving, Iron Horse, Mountain View Tree Services, KeyWest Retaining Systems, Knifer River, Vancouver Paving, West Coast Soil Solutions, Willamette Fence Co.

The Linwood Avenue Corridor Improvements project, completed through collaboration between the City of Milwaukie and Clackamas County Development Agency, has revitalized a critical two-mile stretch of Southeast Linwood Avenue from Southeast Harmony Road to Southeast Johnson Creek Boulevard. Harper Houf Peterson Righellis led engineering efforts, with D&D Concrete & Utilities and MEI Group leading construction.

Prior to construction, Linwood Avenue was a typical minor arterial roadway that was built more than 50 years ago. The roadway was elevated higher than adjacent properties, with years of overlays and numerous utilities strewn throughout the corridor. Four separate water districts had facilities within the roadway – some abandoned and some cross connected as the area transitioned boundaries throughout the years. Because of this, lowering the roadway was not an option.

Within this two-mile stretch of roadway, 17 intersections and 146 driveways access Linwood Avenue. Extensive right-of-way coordination and acquisition was required with each and every property owner impacted by the widening.

A key feature of the project includes a new dedicated pedestrian bridge spanning Johnson Creek, installed as a cost-efficient alternative to modifying the existing vehicular bridge. The project also upgraded traffic signals at key intersections and added rectangular rapid-flashing beacon crossings near Linwood Elementary School.

The improvements serve multiple elementary schools in the area, including Linwood, Seth Lewelling, Wichita, and Lot Whitcomb, while connecting residential neighborhoods to the popular Springwater Corridor Trail.

Engineers developed an innovative street design that combined bicycle lanes with sidewalks into shared-use facilities, reducing the overall width by 4 feet and saving approximately $500,000 in right-of-way and construction costs.

The project incorporated significant environmental benefits, decreasing impervious surface area by about 0.66 acres through pervious cycle tracks, sidewalks and landscaping. Stormwater planters with specialized media now remove sediment and treat roadway runoff, improving water quality in the Johnson Creek Basin.

Construction proceeded in three carefully planned stages to keep the arterial open throughout the project, with only a single day’s closure required to set the pedestrian bridge in place.

In early 2025, Clackamas County will construct the Monroe Street Greenway east of Southeast Linwood Avenue, while Milwaukie designs improvements west of Linwood, further expanding the region’s active transportation network.

The completed corridor represents a Tier 1 High Priority Project identified in the Clackamas County Transportation System Plan and was delivered on schedule and within budget despite challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic.

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