Lacey, Olympia and Tumwater all have areas without sidewalks. Why is that?
Earlier this year during a joint Lacey City Council and Planning Commission meeting, Mayor Andy Ryder finally needed to have a moment.
He took that time to express his frustration over a local transportation network he feels emphasizes roads over sidewalks, and because sidewalks have largely been the responsibility of the private sector, it has left Lacey with sidewalk gaps in some places, and no sidewalks at all in other places.
“I think we need to think more holistically about our transportation network and start including the sidewalk as part of it,” he said.
That prompted The Olympian to ask city leaders in Lacey, Olympia and Tumwater the following: Why don’t cities just build sidewalks rather than wait for new development or road projects to fill that need?
Lacey
Of the three major cities in Thurston County, Lacey has the most noticeable lack of sidewalks, particularly in its older neighborhoods, including a wide swath of homes from Lacey Boulevard to 37th Avenue Southeast and between Golf Club Road and Ruddell Road.
Those neighborhoods reflect old development standards, a time before Lacey was even a city, said Planning Manager Ryan Andrews. Development standards then meant the following: a 60-foot right-of-way, a 20-foot strip of pavement right down the middle for the street, infrastructure for utilities, homes on either side, but without sidewalks and bike lanes, he said.
Fast-forward 30 years and development standards require sidewalks, meaning newer subdivisions throughout the city all have them.
But what about those areas still without them?
Mayor Ryder isn’t the only one to express his frustration about some of those sidewalk gaps he still sees around town. For example, some residents of the Schilter Farm Homeowners Association have long wanted to see sidewalks put in along 37th Avenue for children who walk to nearby Komachin Middle School.
Lacey has responded with a Pedestrian and Bicycle Plan for the city and its urban growth area that was adopted by the council in 2018, Andrews said. It does make recommendations and prioritizes sidewalks, including on 37th, as well as on streets near Mountain View Elementary, such as 19th Avenue, which runs between College Street and Golf Club Road.
However, the plan does not have a funding strategy. It identifies how the city could generate new revenue (local levy, bond measure) as well as existing revenue streams, such as that provided by the voter-approved Transportation Benefit District. All three cities have a TBD.
In Lacey, the city receives a slice of sales tax revenue (two-tenths of 1% or 0.2%) to raise money for pavement preservation and to repair existing sidewalks. This year the city is set to collect $3.75 million, including $500,000 for sidewalk repairs, finance director Troy Woo said.
Why not use that money for new sidewalks as well?
Woo said there’s no legal restriction against building new sidewalks, but the city also wants to stay true to the language of the ballot measure, which did not say the revenue would be used in that way.
Sidewalks are more expensive than people might realize, Public Works Director Scott Egger added.
It’s more than just a walking area, he said. They need curbs, gutters, stormwater drainage, landscape strips and street trees under the new development standards. It also means acquiring right-of-way for those projects, Egger said.
Over time in an older neighborhood, residents begin to perceive those areas of right-of-way as part of their parking or yard and sometimes don’t want to give up that space, he said.
Olympia and Tumwater
In Olympia, the city has a program to build sidewalks, said transportation director Sophie Stimson, and it’s funded in a multi-pronged manner. Revenue streams come from a utility tax and a Transportation Benefit District that takes a slice of sales tax revenue and car tab fees, she said.
Of the city’s $9.6 million transportation capital budget, about $4 million is available for sidewalks, Stimson said. Those sidewalk projects are identified in the city’s transportation master plan and prioritized by safety concerns or proximity to schools, bus stops, parks, major public buildings and employment sites.
Where are the areas of Olympia without sidewalks? There are areas in west Olympia, as well as gaps along Boulevard Road and Fones Road, which is about to be the focus of a major road project, she said.
In Tumwater, the focus is more on repairs and filling gaps in sidewalks, said Mary Heather Ames, assistant transportation and engineering director, adding that there are not such large areas in Tumwater without sidewalks.
One of the city’s current projects is filling sidewalk gaps on Linwood Avenue near Michael T. Simmons Elementary, she said.
The city council sets aside about $100,000 a year for sidewalks, plus the city tries to maximize its Transportation Benefit District revenue with matching funds.
Ames also made this observation: She lives in Olympia’s Eastside Neighborhood, an older part of the city that does not have sidewalks. She feels the streets are wide enough as is for pedestrians and traffic, and there are those who don’t want them because they represent more impervious surface.
“I am a big fan of making streets accessible to all users,” she said.
This story was originally published June 2, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
