Cities present united front on I-84, Highway 26 connector

By Shannon Wells

The Gresham Outlook, Oct 20, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009

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Funding for a long-discussed study on connector routes between Interstate 84 to Highway 26 is moving from pipe dream to distinct possibility.

That’s what members of the East Multnomah County Transportation Committee hope their newfound show of unity will mean when the Joint Policy Advisory Committee for Transportation considers their recently submitted memorandum of understanding.

If the advisory committee, on which Gresham Mayor Shane Bemis serves, agrees with the importance of the study, it will forward its recommendation to Metro regional government for further consideration.

The study will examine the merits and drawbacks of four designated corridors, and determine how best to funnel traffic between I-84 and the busy U.S. Highway 26 corridor.

Metro is preparing to allocate up to $1 million to study corridors, for which East County is competing with other jurisdictions.

Until recently, the four East County cities represented by the transportation committee were not on the same page.

But an agreement to request a study that gives equal weight to all four corridors, including a controversial 238th/242nd Avenue right of way through Troutdale – which skirts Wood Village – changed the tone, said Troutdale Mayor Jim Kight, a member of the transportation committee.

“We don’t want to bias the study by calling out a certain route,” he said. “We want all four corridors to have equal status. There’s a new spirit of cooperation.”

Metro Councilor Rod Park praised the united front on the need for a study.

“Everyone looked at their card, so to speak,” he said, “and realized that by not constructively looking at issues, they'll continue to have a stalemate. By going through with this study, they'll basically get a fair up or down as to what should be done in the future."