Hwy redesign - Tillamook Area Chamber of Commerce

August 1, 2017August 1, 2017

Coming THIS Thursday: Major Traffic Changes

The following is a press release from the Tillamook Police Department:

During the nighttime of Thursday, August 3rd, 2017, THIS THURSDAY Night, there will be traffic changes in the construction zone that WILL impact you. These are scheduled changes in the project. This pattern will be for about a month. There will be other changes in the future that will impact everyone. You can also access the current Chamber diagram for information on the project and upcoming changes at http://tillamookchamber.org/highwayproject.

The first major change is eastbound 1st Street, going towards Main Street from Stillwell Avenue. For at least the next month, when you get to Main Street, you can only turn right, south on Main Avenue through Downtown. You cannot turn left to go to North Main Avenue towards Fred Meyer, Northbound. If you are on First Street, the only way to go north is to go south to Third Street, through Downtown then left on Third Street and left on Pacific Avenue.

If you can avoid 1st Street and get onto Third Street, at least from Stillwell, and go east to Pacific, it will save you trying to drive Downtown and try to get from the right lane to the left lane on Main Street to turn left on 3rd in a few short blocks of heavy traffic. We will add back a second lane to 3rd Street between Pacific and Main to add stacking room. We are also working with ODOT to add time to the eastbound traffic to clear more vehicles.
The second major change will be at Pacific and First. The new connector from First to North Main will open. If you are on Pacific and want to go north to north Main, when you get to First Street, when you have the green light, you can just drive straight through the intersection on the new connector, through the project area. If you are westbound on First Street, approaching Pacific, in the right lane, you will turn right at Pacific onto the new connector and not have to go all the way to Main to turn right. There will now be only one light change conflict and not two like it is now at Main and First.

Most importantly, you need to focus driving through the construction zone now. There are going to be minor changes and delays constantly. The contractors are desperately trying to get as much done before it starts raining. The more they get done now, the less delays there will be in the future.

June 7, 2017

June 7th Hwy Project Update

The plaza is open for walk-throughs and that means that the Blue Moon Café has returned to its storefront and is open for business. Now with one of the best views in the downtown!

Another grand opening of the plaza will occur on Friday the 16 with the Cork’n Brew festivities and there will also be music on the plaza that you can enjoy even if you weren’t lucky enough to score a Cork’n Brew ticket. Of course, the weekend after that will be the June Dairy Parade with its own set of events scheduled for the new plaza. The place is going to be hopping.

There are still a few items to be installed on the plaza but they will probably show up after the June Dairy Parade. July should have us sporting a new informational kiosk in front of the electrical meters, decorative rails around the landscape wells, and bollards at each end of the one-way street, as well as in front of each parking space.

The other July unveiling should include the realignment of Pacific Avenue north of First. Next week is scheduled for prepping all of the subgrade stabilization on the new approach while the lightweight concrete crews set-up for pouring. They will be pouring not only the south side Pacific Avenue connection to the new bridge, but also the new City sidestreet that will be known as the Hoquarton Landing, with a picnic area, transit stop, and parking at the Hoquarton Park and bike/pedway entrance. Tentatively, the paving of the new Pacific Avenue connection will be targeted for July 24th but that is dependant on getting all the pipework, water quality features, drainage, and everything else into place before that time.

In other construction news, on the bridge itself, the rails and pylons are being formed with a target to pour in two weeks, which should then allow the decorative rails, now in the process of being powder-coated, to be placed on top of the concrete ones.

The nightwork continues for this week in order to get the street conduit crossings and boxes placed so that the new vertical signal poles can be set next week. The electrical interconnections for both the signals and the lights can then proceed. The horizontal signal pieces will arrive in the following week or two.

The Eastside sidewalks are in the process of forming and pouring the water quality curbing so that the north end sidewalk can start pouring next week.

Our Highway Project E-news bulletin is created by Jeannell Wyntergreen, Highway 101/6 Project Liaison for the Tillamook Area Chamber of Commerce. If you have any questions or would like to share a comment with the Chamber, contact her at hwyproject@tillamookchamber.org

May 31, 2017June 7, 2017

May 31st Hwy Project Update

The bridge switch went off without a hitch, West First Street is paved and smooth, and the Memorial Day traffic load of tourists did their usual clog-up but nothing more, the project focus, other than some forming of bridge rails, is back to Pacific Avenue.

The sidewalk demolition work has cleared the way so that tonight will launch a couple of weeks of nightwork in the downtown area in order to minimize the traffic impacts of cutting in the utility crossings, manholes, storm drain inlets and beehives on the east side of the road. The heavy equipment required for this work will take up one of the travel lanes for maneuvering and so northbound traffic will be restricted to one lane on the left.

Ear plugs have deposited at key residential locations downtown in recognition of the impending disturbance.

On the west side of the street, next week will see Northwest Liners arriving to line all of the deep holes along the new sidewalks that are meant to catch storm water run-off. After lining, these will be filled with soil, and eventually plants, to filter the water before it runs into the Hoquarton and Bay.

There will also be a Water Quality vault installed this week in the area immediately downslope of the former Shell Station as the contractors prepare the ground for the south approach to the bridge which will connect the bridge with the north end of Pacific, thereby bringing the final highway configuration into reality. The tentative date for getting this paving work done, along with the paving of the new City street alongside it, which will be named Hoquarton Landing, is currently targeted for July 12th. Once this Pacific Avenue extension is in place, the area around the former station will become Shell Island and will be difficult to work in.

Last but not least, the multi-textured festival plaza work is wrapping up with a crosswalk tie-in being poured on the Main Street end and plywood being placed over the tree wells so that nobody trips on them during the Cork’n Brew festivities on Friday, June 16th.

May 3, 2017

May 3rd Highway Project Update

The project crews continue to push six and seven days a week in an effort to keep the progress steaming forward. The buff-colored decorative concrete is set to be poured tomorrow between the dark ribbons and the terra-cotta accent pads that are already in place; the concrete quilt is coming together. The driller’s in town working the corner by the Wells Fargo Bank and moving up Pacific in order to ensure that all traffic signal foundations are set in the next two weeks. The bridgework assembly is clicking together in rapid production with a projected asphalt course being applied on the 22nd of this month. All this without any additional nightwork in the next couple of weeks.

That said, the Chamber was informed on Tuesday that ODOT would be issuing a press release today with an important scheduling announcement regarding the bridge approaches. We will forward that release to you once it is received, we anticipate this to be a short-term project delay notice.

In order for the contractors to position for the demolition of the east side sidewalks, the traffic will be flopped to the west side of the street next Monday, presuming that the weather materializes as forecast so that the restriping can be done. This will still leave some work to be done next week on the west side walkways between 2nd (Blue Moon) and 1st (Rodeo) but that will be handled by a temporary lane closure for that short-term work.

With the work swinging over to the other side of the street, the Chamber has requested that ODOT ensure open parking on the west side of Pacific. The parking bays are only six foot deep, but if the contractor can find enough slack that avoids the wheel ruts developing in the Pacific travel lane, the prospects are good for getting that parking back.

Recent schedule adjustments presented by the contractor show the west side of Pacific being completed by the original date of Memorial Day, however the east side of Pacific is now scheduled to be fully wrapped up by the end of June.

The extended sidewalk work on the east side will surely have an impact on the beginning of summer business, but hopefully, the completion of the plaza, and the west side of the street, and possible parking, this will allow for a vibrant tourist season. The final touch will be the paving crew looking at overlaying Pacific from 4th to 1st before the Fourth of July. That should put a fine finish on the roadway for the rest of the summer traffic.

Somewhere between all of this hubbub, we will celebrate. The Cork’n Brew is set for the first event on our new Plaza on June 16th followed by the June Dairy Festival activities on the 24th. We may have to be careful navigating the crowds through the bits of sidewalk construction as they move from the Farmers’ Market down 2nd to the Plaza and points beyond, but after this long haul, it will all seem worthwhile.

April 26, 2017May 3, 2017

April 26th Hwy Project Update

The Second Street Plaza is blooming in the rain. The revelation of the new stamped and colored concrete corners on Pacific Avenue have already brightened up the dreary weather.

Now the forms are being set for the pouring of the striking dark gray “tactile paver strip” that will serve as the visual “curbing” on the street to differentiate the pedestrian from the vehicular areas when cars are using the westbound one-way. When the plaza is blocked off from traffic for special events, the flat strip will not trip dancers or audience members.

Between the patterns established by those two colors, the variously-scored pebble-color concrete sections which form the base lines of the plaza will be poured over the next three weeks. Then during the week of the May 21st, the benches, bollards, and light poles will be placed in order for the entire plaza to be ready to open by the weekend of Memorial Day. And then be used as part of the June Dairy Parade festivities.

Multiple local companies have been helping in the plaza construction including Bros and Hoes Landscaping, Westwind Concrete, and CoastWide Ready Mix. The landscapers will also be laying the unit pavers between the curb and sidewalk all the way down Pacific from My 12 through the 21st, adding another strip of color down the road.

The other project piece that is tracking well with being completed on schedule is the Hoquarton Bridge itself. The excavator crews and lightweight concrete crews will be flipping back forth between the North and South bridge approaches over the next month, grading, tying in water & sewer lines, and installing the curb, gutter, driveways, & bio-retention ponds to make way for the sidewalk crews to move in on the approaching sidewalk pours.

Atop the bridge, the electrical is now going in along the east side with the forming of the overlook getting finished up next Wednesday and sidewalks/overlook being poured during the next week. And then the magic happens as the bridge rail base and pylons take shape and the bright orange handrail is installed in the week before Memorial Day.

All this despite our record-setting rainfall which has turned a series of contractors’ schedules into unreadable wet rags. While it has been trying, the patience of the Tillamook community during this difficult process has been phenomenal.

April 19, 2017May 3, 2017

April 19th Highway Project Update

In an effort to catch up with the schedule, the project crews have been working six-tens in most locations. Westwind, the concrete flatwork subcontractors, will be jamming on the sidewalks with the Rendezvous on track to be completed by this Friday and the ramps by the Phoenix Exchange set to go next Monday, and then on to the sidewalks between Second & First Streets by the end of next week. Not long after, a concrete crew will be peeling off to start the sidewalks on the north side of the project by the Diesel Repair Shop. Meanwhile, the concrete stamping work in the Second Street Plaza will be ongoing as weather allows.

There have been the usual surprises with fuel tanks under the sidewalks by the Blue Moon and phone poles without adequate bracing, but each headscratcher is dispensed with as it arises, and the crews shift to work around the problem.

The electrical team is pushing right along with the sidewalk crews, setting the last pole foundation up by the Rodeo by Wednesday next week and then jumping onto the bridge to run electrical for the lighting on the east side.

If you want to see a “Guppy” in action, one is moving in this week on the north side of the bridge to start pouring lightweight concrete off the ends of the bridge. Once the sewer lines are installed on the south side, the “Guppy” will switch over to start pouring lightweight on that end in a couple of weeks.

Another set of nightwork events will occur on 101 next Monday and Tuesday nights in order to reset barrier pins.

On the bridge itself, while the deck is curing, wingwalls are being poured and next week will see the east side water overlook being formed up. When the project is done, there will be a cantilevered overlook on each side of the bridge for viewing up and down the Hoquarton, hopefully creating an inviting showpiece in the heart of the community.

With all of this preparatory work coming together, we should finally be able to see the new streetscape take shape in three weeks from now as pavers go down, tree grates are installed, along with decorative fences around the new streetside planters.

Hopefully, as the sun comes out more often, all of this effort should reveal some substantial visible progress like a rainbow at the end of a storm.

hwyproject@tillamookchamber.org

April 5, 2017April 7, 2017

April 5th Highway Project Update

After extended discussion, and multiple schedule revisions, at this week’s ODOT project team meeting, the contractors and agency partners concluded that, in order to expedite the Pacific Avenue sidewalk work, additional crew resources would be put into grading and finishing the last conduit work on the west Pacific sidewalk between 2nd and 3rd this week so that the concrete can start to be poured next Tuesday and then reopened for foot traffic by the week thereafter.

While the flatwork is being poured, all the digging and curbline work would continue across the 2nd Street intersection so that the concrete work could follow right behind. Work on these first two segments would then lead to the demolition of the remaining west Pacific sidewalks up past the Rodeo. Once that alignment is complete, the plan is to swing the concrete crews over to the Second Street Plaza, which should be graded and ready, and start them working the full street from east to west. With the concentrated prep work leading the way, the concrete crews should be able to keep pouring continuously, without having to wait on subgrade stabilization, curb & gutter, or weather.

In order to make this approach function, the access to the Blue Moon Café would be flipped, moving back to their westward door with a boardwalk that would be constructed to Main. The Phoenix Exchange, which has been struggling along with its limited access, has agreed to limit it even further by closing for a couple of days when the crews pour their access, rather than having their approach poured in halves to allow continuous access to their business. That way, while the disruption is greater, it is for a shorter period of time as the entire entry would cure all at once.

Because these are going to be tough times for those businesses, please go out of your way to patronize them during this period while the intensity of the sidewalk work around their businesses increases in an effort to get it done faster.

In other project arenas, the installation of the electrical conduits for future undergrounding of wires is nearing completion under the impending plaza, thanks to a partnership of the project contractors, the City, the Urban Renewal Agency, and the Tillamook People’s Utility District.

The nightwork in front of Rosenberg’s has run smoothly so far, enabling the installation of the 18-inch storm drain tie-in crossings to be placed without too much traffic disruption. There is still some storm drain work to come with the 30-inch and 36-inch tie-ins remaining to be completed on the north end. The City’s waterline is already installed in the bridge and ready to be hooked up when the storm drains are done.

The bridge itself is going through its readiness checklist in anticipation of starting to pour the deck around the 13th of April. This major construction element will take about a week to complete.

March 31, 2017April 7, 2017

March 31st Highway Project Update

Oregon spring break has thrown more than usual commotion into the traffic mix and next week’s Washington break may add even more, particularly if the weather shows a couple of strands of sunshine.

They’ll be arriving to see the further demolition of the west sidewalk between 2nd and 1st Streets up to the Rodeo. That will push the envelope with having two blocks open at a time but the hope is to move right in behind them with the curbs, driveways, ADA Ramps, and sidewalks.

The pedestrian bridges and pathways to the entrances along Pacific have taken on the appearance of a maze. With the underground vaults exposed, the residents and business patrons have found the work beneath their feet quite intriguing. In this next week however, the lids for those vaults should be poured and the vaults backfilled so that attraction will disappear back underground.

Next door, the Second Street plaza will be getting a lot of attention as the conduits for the future undergrounding of electrical power in the plaza is installed by Just Bucket Excavating, Inc., so that the base for the new roadway and the fine grading can follow shortly behind.

And right behind that, Westwind, the concrete flatwork subcontractors, will be building a 10 x 10 plaza mock-up so that everyone can see a sample of what the future will bring. At a later point, after everyone is done admiring it, the mock-up will be incorporated into the permanent flatwork on the Plaza.

Similarly, the bridgework is now on a very focused timeline as the decks are being formed up, run-offs are set up, and bulkheads maneuvered into place in preparation for the deck pour that is targeted for Tax Day. Remember that’s April 18th this year.

Fortunately, Spring breakers will not likely encounter the traffic-stopping drainage pipe crossings by the front of Rosenberg’s as those are set to occur as night work early next week. These tie-ins will run back to the east side where the main drain has been laid, and getting them across 101 will require flaggers to move vehicles through, so with the holiday traffic and Rosenberg’s business activities in mind, the decision was made to shift the work out of high traffic hours and into the night.

March 24, 2017

March 24th Highway Project Update

The sidewalk on Pacific Avenue between 4th and 3rd Streets by Wells Fargo Bank and Homelife Furniture has been opened up to foot traffic, the fuel tanks have been removed and the Pacific Avenue undersidewalk vaults opened up for repair and reconstruction. With vault lids being set by the Rendezvous this week and the Blue Moon next, the contractor is pushing hard to get the sidewalk work next to the Tillamook Apartments and the Rendezvous poured and cured so that the folks who traffic that block can return to some semblance of normalcy.

Admittedly, the pedestrian pathways leading to the entrances along Pacific have been confusing for both residents and patrons; hopefully a clear system that everyone can pick up on intuitively will be in place by this weekend.

The sidewalk disruptions will shift to the Post Office frontage along First Street beginning the first week of April as pipework starts to get laid back past Laurel toward Madrona. There will have to be some carefully coordinated work around the delivery entrance to the rear of the Post Office as everyone knows that, regardless of which way the wind blows, ‘the mail must get through’.

In the meantime, the bridge continues apace. The steel is being delivered and the decks will be formed up over the next two weeks now that the waterline is tied together in the channels underneath. The bridge takes on more of its final shape with every passing day.

The drainage work on the north end by the Diesel Repair Shop is ready to stub out the 18” westward laterals next week, which may require some nightwork in the vicinity of Rosenberg’s to get them across the travel lanes. However, the good news is that, with SC Paving’s asphalt batch opening on the 30th, the pothole patching throughout the project should vastly improve.

In a last minute turn of events, a local partnership has cropped up that will lay the groundwork for the future undergrounding of electrical power in the Second Street plaza (soon to be renamed through a citywide contest). The Tillamook Urban Renewal Agency has joined forces with the Tillamook People’s Utility District, the Tillamook Public Works Department, and Just Bucket Excavating, Inc. to ensure the installation of sufficient conduits and vaults under the Plaza that will accommodate the future pulling of all overhead wires in that area down through those tubes in order to keep the visual clutter in this community centerpiece to a minimum.

Each partner is bringing either money, materials, or labor forward in this last effort before the plaza get constructed with hard surfacing that will prevent the ability to lay these conduits for decades to come.

March 17, 2017

March 17th Highway Project Update

When Governor Kate Brown came to town on Wednesday to view the progress of the 101/6 Highway Project, the rain provided a seamless backdrop curtain to the jackhammers and sawcutting as she listened to local businesspeople at Madaline’s Vintage Marketplace talk about their concerns.

While the bridgework is essentially tracking along its projected trajectory, in an effort to accelerate the sidewalk process that has fallen so far behind its original schedule, ODOT and its contractors have agreed to a project revision that allows them to take up two blocks of sidewalk at a time on the west side of Pacific (between 3rd and 1st) so that they can gain some work efficiencies and shorten the overall disruption time. With this change, jackhammers and sawcutting were in full swing.

This may cause some increased discomfort in the short term for businesses such as the Blue Moon Cafe, but the hope is that it will decrease the total downtime. As always, such times of duress are when the affected businesses need your patronage the most.

The preliminary digging along Pacific has uncovered a bunker fuel tank, which is being pumped out and removed, but, barring further unknowns, the two-block effort should allow the concrete workers to move along with pouring larger sections at a time. The tricky timing of ensuring continuous access to businesses and residences is the next major logistic to be surmounted and the ODOT team is applying a variety of tools, such as night work, quick-fixing concrete, and temporary alternate accesses, to ensure that the all sidewalk sections come together smoothly and briskly.

In the midst of all this hubbub, you will see the excavation team jumping back and forth across the Hoquarton as they dash up to the north end next week to close up the drainage work there and then jump back down mid-week to tie the 2nd Street storm drainage into the manhole on Main Street. This full day’s work will require traffic control that necks down southbound traffic on Main to one-lane from the bridge to just south of 2nd.

When you do get back around to watching the bridge progress, now that the spans and bearings have been set, you will see the deck being formed over the next few weeks. You will also spot City crews who will be joining the contractor next week to assemble the new waterline across the bridge. This will be the main that serves the entire north Hwy 101 area up to the Fred Meyer/Goodwill as well as providing a backfeed for Bay City and the Creamery through our intertie system.

The Governor left town with a picture of Tillamook, from the project to the Creamery to the Chamber of Commerce offices themselves, in the midst of a full remodel. The promises made were that another visit in Fall 2018 would provide an entirely different picture of a community complete.

March 17, 2017March 23, 2017

March 17th Highway Project Update

March 8, 2017March 17, 2017

March 8th Highway Project Update

The time is fast approaching for us all to cross the bridge to our Rendezvous.

As of Friday of this week, the long-lingering sidewalk construction on Pacific Avenue between 4th and 3rd Streets by Wells Fargo Bank and Homelife Furniture, which has suffered through several technical re-do’s and tenting to allow for flatwork in the rain, will be stripped of forms, coned off where there’s any trip hazards, and opened up to foot traffic. Then, starting Friday morning, the next stretch of sidewalk from 3rd to 2nd will be torn up.

Which means that the Rendezvous, with its two mid-block doors (and no rear access), will only be available to customers that cross a bridge. Remember that, with this project, when sidewalk demolition occurs, a pedestrian access to each business and residence must be kept open at all times. This will include the Tillamook Apartments as well.

After demolition, and after conduits, drainage, and curbs are laid out, the sidewalks on that block will be poured in such a way as to extend past one of the Rendezvous’ two doors (the one without the bridge). Then the bridge will be moved over the curing sidewalk to the second entrance and the next stretch of the sidewalk will be poured past the initial entrance. At all times, patrons of the Rendezvous will have the best view in town of the ongoing construction, so please make sure that you don’t miss out on this great opportunity.

As to the other, bigger, but less integrated into daily community life, bridge, on Wednesday we should witness the setting of the first girder span, with two more being placed and the big bearings seated three on each end by the end of next week. It won’t be too much longer until the bridge deck begins to be formed.

Along the other arms of the project, the drainage work is within 100 feet of its limits on the north end by the Diesel Repair Shop and should complete that last extension and stub out the westward laterals in the next two days so that they can jump off that task and do the Pacific Avenue demo. Similarly, the electrical work will be adding the junction boxes in the new tree wells in the Second Street Plaza and laying the conduits from 3rd to 2nd in the next week so that they can jump over to begin the work in Goodspeed Park.

ODOT and Oregon State Bridge Construction are still negotiating ideas on how to accelerate the speed of the sidewalk construction. While they have a concept that appears to be workable at this time, they are still officially paced to work on one blockface at a time. Hopefully, that will change soon and the project will take off in a flurry of activity so that the Pacific Avenue sidewalks are back open and humming with pedestrians frequenting their favorite businesses again.

But let’s cross that bridge when we come to it.

March 8, 2017March 7, 2017

Cranes, sidewalks, and walking paths, oh my!

By Justin Aufdermauer
Executive Director

Does anyone else feel a little like they are in Seattle or Portland? Our skyline is crowded with cranes lately, moving meticulously around traffic as they set the cumbersome bridge supports. Soon they will be hoisting the bridge bearings up one by one and maneuvering the hefty pieces into place. Next on the list is placing the mammoth girders that will span the Hoquarton.

A little north of Hoqurton, large storm drains and beehives are being installed, and on Second Street the tree wells are finally ready to be formed. Once the storm drainage work is complete, the new pedestrian plaza will be ready for its makeover – in other words they will be pouring the colored and multi-patterned concrete. That should be exciting to see and for many of us it will help to visualize the final picture that we’ve been waiting so long for.

Remember that this month the construction zone might feel like it has expanded a bit as the foundations and electrical trenching begin along the new bicycle/pedestrian trail near Goodspeed Park. We will also see the formation of the interior bays and overhang for the pedestrian walkway over the Port of Tillamook Bay’s Hwy 6 railroad bridge.

For those wondering, this bicycle and pedestrian path will eventually lead back to the Hoquarton Landing park near the Hwy 101 bridge. Then it will cross the highway via a traffic island to join Sue H. Elmore Park, which will be renovated later this summer. The City of Tillamook has plans to continue a boardwalk path westward through Front Street towards the walking circuit around Tillamook Regional Medical Center.

Speaking of walking, the new sidewalk pattern that was tested next to Homelife Furniture has been approved and the rest of the sidewalks are scheduled for pouring. This piece of the project is a tad behind schedule after 90 feet of newly-poured sidewalk had to be torn up when it was discovered it didn’t have the correct scoring pattern on it. This pattern will set the tone for the rest of downtown, where more than 2,000 feet of new sidewalks will be added from First Street to Fourth Street and from Main to Pacific.

There is a lot of questions coming in about if the bridge and sidewalks are going to be done by Summer. Due to some recent revisions to the bridge construction we have received word that ODOT is still committed to opening all lanes of traffic by this summer. The sidewalk schedule is currently being revised and all parties are coming to the table to identify the best timeline revisions to make sure that this stays on track for completion by Memorial Day.

You can stay up-to-date on the highway project be visiting tillamookchamber.org and subscribing to our weekly bulletin. If you have any questions regarding the highway project email Jeannell at hwyproject@tillamookchamber.org.

March 7, 2017

March 3 Hwy Project Update

With all of the big crane work underway, and the focus of activity being trained on the Hoquarton Bridge and its surrounds, watching the big bridge puzzle pieces, along with the lesser, more functional components such as the waterlines, get assembled in slow motion, an observer can easily fail to notice that there are flashes of other construction hotspots popping up around the community as well.

Everything is gearing up for the multi-textured and colored concrete pours on Second Street between Main and Pacific. The treewells are being laid out with electrical junction boxes included so that the community can host events in the new festival plaza that is being created with power available for sound, lighting, and possibly even food carts or other specialties. An informational kiosk is targeted to land in front of the electrical meterbank on the northeast corner of 2nd and Main and there is a jut-out being formed on the southeast corner of 2nd and Main that will be plumbed for a future fountain. A covered bikerack will be located on the southwest corner of 2nd and Pacific.

Currently, this future plaza does not have a formal name, but the City’s Beautification Committee is meeting on Monday, March 13 at 4:45 PM to discuss ideas on what to name this plaza, so if you have ideas, please submit them to City Hall in writing before the time of that meeting. The name, whatever it turns out to be, is going to help set the tone for the future of the downtown and have a legacy that carries forward for decades and so your ideas are encouraged.

Over east, the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad has completed their review of the plans for the upcoming Port railroad bridge reconfiguration and has signed off on a bicycle/pedestrian bridge that parallels the track that they lease. The City is excited about this potential future partnership that will eventually tie together at a rail platform in Goodspeed Park next to the Skatepark. The hope is that someday visitors can get on and off a train there, grab a bus or launch off down the path to the waterfront area for some nature exploring or stopping in at our local downtown attractions. Or if they are truly adventurous, throw down a skateboard and go sailing.

As to the slow sidewalk improvements along Pacific, ODOT and the contractor are currently investigating options to expedite their construction to ensure completion by Memorial Day. This will require some alteration of the original projection of one month per blockface. Both the Chamber and City are pressing for a more aggressive schedule that will meet that original target.

February 23, 2017February 28, 2017

February 23, 2017 Hwy Update

Now that all of the big girders for spanning the Hoquarton have arrived and are stacked alongside the roadway, the next gigantic arrival will be an enormous crane pulling into town this weekend to be on hand for setting the large pre-cast support caps during the negative tides Monday and Tuesday of next week.

The girders themselves are anticipated to be set the week following, along with the 800 pound bridge bearings that were just delivered to the site. The bridge will begin to shape over the next month as all of these pieces are assembled.

Also in March, there will be fresh activity popping up at the far eastern end of the project around Goodspeed Park as foundations and trenching for electrical along the new bicycle/pedestrian trail gets underway. This will be coupled with next week’s forming of the interior bays and overhang on the pedestrian walkway over the Port’s Highway 6 railroad bridge.

Eventually this pathway system will tie back to the Hoquarton Landing park area by the 101 bridge. The pathway, using a traffic island, will cross the highway to the Sue H. Elmore Park, which will be renovated this summer. From there, the City’s long-range plans are to continue the path westward using a ‘boardwalk’ system that brings pedestrians through the City’s historic birthplace to additional kayak launch points and then ties into a walking circuit around the Adventist Health complex.

As to other walk areas, the sidewalk pattern for the downtown has been perfected and approved for the trial segment by the side of Homelife Furniture. The paver slab pour that accompanies it is tentatively scheduled for next week. Assuming all goes well, this should enable the balance of the sidewalk construction to proceed forthwith from this point on.

However, after all the delays and with the original projection of one month per blockface, there are scheduling concerns about wrapping up all the sidewalk work by Memorial Day. The Chamber and City are pressing for a more aggressive schedule that will meet that original target. We will keep you posted.

February 22, 2017February 26, 2017

February Mainstream Happenings

by Sierra Lauder
Director of Events and Downtown Promotion

February Frenzy! It’s been wild around the Mainstreet District these past few weeks. Enthusiastic teenagers with fully functioning vocal chords have been sharing street corners with sandwich boards full of activities, and yet there has still been plenty of room for shoppers who have zig zagged around town supporting Charity Drive events and Cash Mobs. There are two more Cash Mobs events on the roster- so keep those calendars out! This Saturday, February 25^th, we’ll be at The Rendezvous from 4:30-6. Why so early? So we have plenty of time to walk over to Yo Time for the 6:30 Open Mic night hosted by Art Accelerated. Live music acts have signed up, as well as a handful of writers and poets; if you would like to be included in the roster, give the Chamber a call and we can help connect you to the sign-up sheet. March 5^th (make a note- this date has changed) is a brunch Cash Mob at The Blue Moon Café. They are currently closed for some unanticipated remodeling, and are hoping to reopen for regular hours soon. It’s hard not to be in awe of our community this time of year, and the Chamber is both proud and honored to be a partner.

Planning has kicked off hot and heavy for the June Dairy Parade and Festival. The Festivals Committee, which meets year-round, is really starting to dig in to ideas, organization, and delegation. The coloring contest, which debuted last year, is about to go live. Check your local library branch for entry forms. You may recall the Pirate Fest and Penny Scramble that took place after the parade last year- this year we are hoping to grow that festival atmosphere and expand the children’s activities. Clubs, businesses or organizations who are interested in hosting or sponsoring an activity in the festival are invited to attend the Festivals Committee or stop by or call the Chamber.

I also recently had the opportunity to attend the Mainstreet Quarterly Workshop in Cottage Grove. It is so fun to visit another community and see how they tackle some of the same challenges we look at here, and compare ideas and strategies. Mainstreet programs from all over the state were present. We discussed strategies for consolidating sponsorships, working with partners, and grant funding opportunities available through the state for development projects in Mainstreet communities. There are a few different grants available for rehabilitation efforts, and we have visited with a few property owners who might be a match for these funds. If you have property that you are thinking of investing in and want to learn more about Mainstreet and the parameters of the grants that are available, please call or email me at the Chamber: (503) 842-7525, sierra@tillamookchamber.org.

February 16, 2017February 28, 2017

Mid February 2017 Hwy Update

Logs trucks move over; the bridge is arriving.

Starting tomorrow, Friday the 17th, and repeating next Monday & Wednesday, trucks bearing the long bridge beams will be coming to town. Expect short delays as flag cars stop 101traffic while the trucks make the difficult turns into the work site to deliver the big sticks.

This is all gearing up so that Oregon State Bridge Construction can set the first span on March 7th. Meanwhile the rest of the bridgework is continuing forward now that the Oregon Transportation Commission approved a Bridge Bent Cap redesign today. This will replace the original cast-in-place components, poured inside a falsework cofferdam in the middle of the Hoquarton, with a pre-cast bent cap approach that forms up and pours the bridge supports off-site and trucks them in to avoid the trials and tribulations that this year’s heavy storm flows and high tides have brought to bear.

Of course, that means additional long-bed trucks bringing in large pre-cast components for off-loading in the future, with all of the attendant short-term traffic delays, but it carries the added benefit of keeping the overall project on schedule.

As to the overall project, it also received a significant structural support today with the Oregon Transportation Commission approving the needed additional funding to cover the budget shortfalls. This approval carries the added benefit of keeping the entire project viable so that it can be completed as promised to the Tillamook community.

Meanwhile, the other aspects of the project take two steps forward and then one step back as 90 feet of sidewalk was poured on Pacific Avenue and then had to be torn out as it didn’t have the pre-approved scoring pattern on it that will be matched throughout the downtown. While 90 feet sounds like a lot, the mistake was fortunately caught right away because it will set the tone for the look of the town center with over 2,000 feet of new sidewalks in the area from First to Fourth and Main to Pacific.

Hopefully, the project has crested the difficult haul upslope over the learning curve issues and the downslope run can now cut loose with new improvements being realized every month.

February 8, 2017February 6, 2017

New sidewalks, fixed potholes, and new paver strips all point to progress

By Justin Aufdermauer
Executive Director

It’s amazing the difference one month can make on the downtown construction project. The north end of the sidewalk between Third and Fourth streets is being poured this week, and the south side is scheduled to be poured next week. Wells Fargo’s driveway has even been poured!

I know that for many, last fall felt slow and draining, but from here on out progress should be more visible in nearly every aspect of the highway interchange redesign.

Since the beginning of January we’ve seen significant grading, forming and pouring of our curbs, sidewalks and ADA ramps, and I think everyone agrees it will be nice to have those back in action. The pedestrian access points have been a huge help throughout all of this, but there is something exciting about seeing sidewalks again. Thank you to everyone who has braved the demolition and continued to patronize our businesses.

We also saw the annual pothole cluster near the corner of First and Pacific, which was first filled with cold patch, then covered with the steel plate – both unsuccessful. Kudos are in order to ODOT and the contractor, OSBC, for stepping up and digging out the faulty base and asphalt and doing a thorough repair – even though they will be digging this up again soon. Additional roadway markings were also secured throughout the project area to keep traffic patterns distinct and improving travel lanes – especially at night.

Speaking of potholes, we have brought the need for the seams of the Hoquorton Bridge to be patched and have received favorable feedback from ODOT that this will be handled as soon as they have hot asphalt available.

Second Street is also making headway, although from the surface it might be hard to tell. Bases for light posts have been added, structural supports are being poured, and storm drain lines have been laid in. Next comes the electrical conduits, which will be trenched in over the next few weeks. That will also for the pouring of the tactical paver strips. That all might sound kind of tedious and boring to some, but these paver strips will be the first visible elements of the Second Street Plaza between Main and Pacific. This plaza, which will be the backdrop for many town festivals, will begin to take shape over the next few months. (Remember: This plaza is not being closed to traffic, but instead will be a one-way to match to the rest of Second Street).

Just think, by the end of the highway redesign in 2018, Blue Moon Café, The Phoenix Exchange, and the newly relocated Pacific Restaurant will all have a front-row seat to a wonderful new addition of our downtown. While the end result is exciting, let’s not forget that many of our core businesses in the downtown area are still severely impacted by the construction. They need our loyalty now more than ever. As we mentioned last week, we are planning several “cash mobs” this month to support The Phoenix Exchange; Madeline’s Vintage Marketplace; Blue Moon Café; and The Rendezvous. For more information, visit www.tillamookchamber.org.

Also, don’t forget to swing by our new office at 208 Main Avenue to lend your voice to the Wayfinding Sign discussion. We are seeking input on design, placement, and the types of things the signs should point to. It’s been a robust conversation thus far with many of you, and it is our hope that we can continue to get feedback that will propel the discussion further forward, and develop a complete signage plan that will coincide with the end of the highway project in 2018. If you would like to weigh in on wayfinding via email you can do so by emailing Sierra at sierra@tillamookchamber.org

February 3, 2017February 28, 2017

February 3, 2017 Hwy Update

This week the activity has visibly picked up on the Pacific Avenue sidewalk alongside Homelife Furniture and Wells Fargo, in addition to the demolition work on Second Street, and, with the Highway Project now returning to full swing after the holidays, we are now returning to regular bulletin releases again.

We will likely be seeing significant grading, forming, and pouring of the curbs, sidewalks, and ADA ramps occurring in the next few weeks. Driveways will be poured one half at a time in order to keep access open. Where sidewalk demolition occurs, a pedestrian access to each business will be kept open at all times. While this may cause some inconvenience, such as even having customers go around the block to get to the door in some cases, your favorite businesses will always be available to you.

Ahead of the sidewalk construction will be the electrical work drilling in and forming up the lightpole foundations and pouring the vaults for the signal control cabinets.

At the bridge, the foundational support work continues on the east half of the new bridge as the cages are being formed up, and then the individual columns poured and stripped.

The New Year’s work is picking up momentum and, in contrast to last Fall’s seeming lack of forward motion, progress should be more visible now as more surface work commences. The changes in the streetscape can now be witnessed as the shapes change from day-to-day.

You too can help to change the shape of the downtown. While the new home of the Chamber of Commerce at 208 Main Avenue (the old Bell’s Office Supply storefront) is in the process of being remodeled to fit its new purposes, it is currently hosting an open house display of ideas for “wayfinding signage” in Tillamook. This project for the City focuses on a series of guidance signs, for pedestrians and automobiles, that point the way to local attractions.

Exactly where such signs should be placed and what they should say requires your input, because who knows the community better than you? So please, find your way to the new Chamber office up until February 9th to check out the project information and leave your suggestions. Your input will be used to develop a signage plan that should be laid out and constructed to coincide with the end of the Highway project in 2018; another part of our ‘total downtown makeover’. If you have any questions regarding the project, call Sierra at (503) 842-7525 or email her at Sierra@tillamookchamber.org.

January 23, 2017February 28, 2017

January 23, 2017 Hwy Update

Welcome to the New Year. It is our fervent hope that 2017 brings a brisk pace to the construction now that many of the roadblocks that stalled progress last year have been cleared away and resolved. We know that the businesses would love to see it move along and produce the benefits that will make the pain worthwhile.

Many were happy to see that, at last, after the breakdown of a critical piece of equipment during the holidays; the sidewalk work on Pacific Avenue got underway today as the electrical contractors were out there in the cold drilling holes for the lamppost foundations.

With the drilling now done, the rebar formation and conduits will follow behind shortly, to be poured in the next week and joined by the storm drainage and curb & gutter. This will be followed by additional electrical work drilling and pouring the foundations for the new traffic signals.

If the good, but cold, weather holds through Friday, you may also see work on the storm drain piping down by the Hoquarton coming up the hill again. Once done, this will free up another logjam, enabling various other pieces of the project near the new bridge to go forward.

On a more personal note for those of you who have been bouncing your tires off that plate on the corner of Pacific and First, that creeping sinkhole that has emerged out of the north and south ends on the plate will be filled in with heated patch material this week in the hopes of stopping the sinkhole.

Finally, the contractor will be putting down additional roadway markings over the next week in the interest of keeping the traffic patterns distinct and improving the travel lanes obvious at night.

We hope that we are all building a road to a Happy New Year!