'We're finally there': Columbia Heights expansion, sidewalk addition to start in 2027

A Longview road project that has been in the works in one form or another since at least the 1990s will finally begin early next year.

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City engineers and officials say they are nearly three-quarters of the way finished mapping out plans for a two-year, multimillion-dollar renovation of Columbia Heights Road.

Once completed, the project will address a list of long-simmering concerns on the two-lane road, ranging from nighttime visibility to pedestrian safety, according to Assistant City Manager and Public Works Director Chris Collins.

"It's going to be a long project to build, but it's going to be worth it when it's done," Collins said.

Motorists will face an estimated 20 months of varying detours and delays when the project to widen and resurface the hilltop road begins early next year, according to city engineer Sam Barham.

"There will definitely be traffic impacts," he said.

1,800 feet of retaining wall

The project widens a milelong stretch of the two-lane road between the intersections of Fishers Lane and Cascade Drive by about 6 feet, according to Barham and Collins.

The project adds a 4-foot sidewalk to one side of the roadway that expands to 5 feet in width every 200 feet, according to handouts and displays at a Tuesday open house.

Columbia Heights open house

Plans to widen Columbia Heights Road by roughly 6 feet are shown in this cross-section posted April 14 at an open house at Longview City Hall. City officials say that the retaining walls were among the costliest and most complicated parts of the project, widening the hilltop road to make it safer for motorists and pedestrians.

Collins explained that widening the road requires extensive use of retaining walls, along with other stabilization and drainage efforts, to ensure the widened road holds after being carved out of the hillside. The 13 retaining walls total 1,800 linear feet, according to information from city handouts given at the open house.

The Daily News archives show that the road and nearby Maplewood Drive have been prone to landslides, notably including one in 2015 that closed the road for several days, according to news reports at the time.

Other improvements include 4,000 feet of guardrail, new lighting, new striping and storm drainage upgrades, including more than 7,000 feet of pipe across 75 structures in the area.

Mayor Erik Halvorson noted that the project would not have bike lanes. Collins explained that the city received a waiver from the state regarding a bike lane mandate due to financial constraints.

$16.65 million in federal, state and local funding

Adding a bike lane to the milelong stretch would have added about $35 million to the total cost - an amount more than double the $16.65 million in federal, state and local funding for the road improvement project, Collins added.

State- and federally funded road projects require that bicycle facilities receive "full consideration" in the planning and design phases, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation's design manual.

More than half of the project will be federally funded, according to the city. Those federal funds include a $7.5 million congressional earmark and a $1.25 million Surface Transportation Block Grant. State funding makes another $5 million.

Columbia Heights open house

Longview City Engineer Sam Barham stands next to signs outlining planned construction phases for an overhaul of Columbia Heights Road in this photo taken April 14 at city hall. The project is years in the making, and on track to start construction early next year.

Another $2.9 million comes from local funding, which Halvorson said includes funds from the Transportation Benefit District $40 vehicle renewal fee.

He touted the broad assortment of revenue streams for the project as exemplary of the council's agreed-upon areas of focus for the year: fiscal responsibility, community safety and strategic infrastructure investment.

"I think this project has all three of these (priorities)," Halvorson said.

Postponed for years

Collins, who has been with the city of Longview since 2012, said the road project has been a priority since well before he started. Some of the plans for the top section have been in the works in one form or another since 1999; portions of funding secured for the project go back to the early 2000s.

"We're finally there," Collins said. "It feels amazing."

Most recently, the project was stalled in late 2024 despite getting Biden-era funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill because it was still millions of dollars short, according to an earlier news report.

Columbia Heights open house

Longview Public Works Director and Assistant City Manager Chris Collins and Police Chief Robert Huhta review a large map of Columbia Heights Road and a section near Fishers Lane where the road will be closed for an extended period of time next year in this photo taken April 14 at city hall.

City manager Jen Wills called the project nearing construction "a win for Longview."

"The community has been asking for this for a really long time," Wills said.

Three phases of construction

The project will cause detours and delays for an estimated 18-20 months across three construction phases, according to Barham, with through traffic detoured to West Side Highway and Nevada Drive.

The first phase of construction will close Columbia Heights between Fishers Lane and lower Maplewood Drive for an estimated 12 months, starting in January or early February. Local residents will be able to access Maplewood through the upper Maplewood intersection during the closure while crews work on the lower section's retaining walls, utilities, sidewalk and guardrails, according to Barham and city maps.

Columbia Heights open house

This photo taken April 14 at Longview City Hall provides a closer look at plans for Columbia Heights Road between Fishers Lane and Lynwood Drive.

Phase two moves the work zone between the intersections of upper and lower Maplewood Drive with more retaining wall, utility, sidewalk and guardrail work. That phase is anticipated to last five months, with lower Columbia Heights accessible to local traffic from Fishers Lane with single-lane closures and flaggers.

The final phase is paving and striping, expected to last about three months, with a partial closure expected at the Lynnwood Drive intersection. Columbia Heights will be open to local traffic during that time, with flaggers guiding traffic in sections where the lane is closed.

Next steps

The design phase is about three-quarters of the way complete and should be finalized by August, according to Barham.

The project will go out to bid in September. Contractors will have about a month to submit their proposals before it goes to the City Council.

Barham said the road project also requires Washington State Department of Transportation concurrence before it can be awarded.

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This story was originally published April 21, 2026 at 4:24 AM.