There was a lot accomplished during last Monday's City Council meeting including approval of the Transportation Benefit District Program for 2012 and the recommendations brought forward by the Citizens’ Transportation Advisory Board (CTAB).

The 2012 projects will be the first to be done under the TBD, which was created in the fall of 2010 to fund street maintenance and pedestrian improvements, and is funded through a $20 vehicle license tab fee.

TBD vehicle tab fees have been collected since September 2011. Revenues generated from the fees during the 12 months ending August 2012 will be used to pay for the projects approved for the 2012 construction season. The TBD will raise about $2.5 million for the 2012 work. The 2012 projects will include:

• Five grind and overlay projects on arterial streets.

• Three grind and overlay projects on residential streets (one per City Council District).

• Three chip seal projects on residential streets (one per City Council District).

• Investment in the residential crack seal program, resulting in approximately 300,000 linear feet sealed.

• Recommendations for implementing the Pedestrian Program of the TBD.

The CTAB recommended that the money raised through the TBD not be used to supplant existing funding for the City’s Street Department. “If that happens, we will make no progress,” the CTAB noted in its report.

 View the full report on the projects and the recommendations of the CTAB, a citizen advisory board created to assist with TBD funding decisions and more. The TBD Program includes both arterial and residential projects and starts the City down a path of ‘Best Pavement Maintenance Practice’ not possible without the additional revenue produced from the $20 vehicle tab fee.

Some of the benefits of the 2012 TBD program include:

• Reduction in the streets maintenance backlog.

• Preservation of existing streets by instituting both a residential chip seal program and a residential crack seal program to prolong the life of these streets.

• Setting aside 10 percent of TBD revenue for future pedestrian improvement.

Here's a breakdown from the report:

2012 Approved TBD Funding Distribution

Project Type Amount* Funding*
Aterial Grind & Overlay $975,000 39%
Residential Grind & Overlay $350,000 14%
Total Grind & Overlay $1,325,000 53%
Total Chip Seal $525,000 21%
Residential Crack Seal $325,000 13%
Winter Damage/Response1 $75,000 3%
Pedestrian Program $250,000 10%
TOTAL $2.5 million 100%

*Percentages and dollar figures are estimates based on the number of vehicles registered in the City of Spokane when the TBD was adopted.

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