Ridgefield's Pioneer Street project advances with environmental mitigation agreement

The City of Ridgefield must address environmental requirements to begin its Pioneer Street widening project, which aims to accommodate traffic to and from Interstate 5.

Ridgefield approved a $21.4 million contract in June to widen Pioneer Street and construct North 50th Place, a road that will connect to the developing YMCA and Costco. Before construction starts this fall, Ridgefield Public Works Director Chuck Green explained the city will need its last permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to accommodate environmental impacts.

During a Thursday, July 25, City Council meeting, Green explained the final permit is contingent on compensating for impacts to the environment near the project. The widening of Pioneer Street and creation of Pioneer Canyon Drive will cut into 2.08 acres of four surrounding wetlands. Wetlands are of ecological value to Washington, as they mitigate floods and pollutants crossing into nearby streams.

“We do not have enough city property that can be used to mitigate the wetlands impacts next to the property, nor is it suitable property to do so,” Green said.

To address these environmental impacts, Ridgefield will contribute $227,250 to East Fork Lewis Mitigation Partners, a wetland mitigation bank located near La Center. These banks use funds to restore, protect and occasionally create local wetland areas, effectively offsetting the effects caused by development to other wetlands. The original money set aside for such mitigations was $100,000. Green explained the city’s contribution to the wetland bank may have more ecological value than the city making its own wetland improvements.

“[The Department of Ecology] prefers we enter this mitigation agreement and purchase into that bank because the overall quality of the wetlands in [that] area is a better replacement than we would be able to provide on city property along Pioneer,” Green said.

Once Ridgeifeld receives its last permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the project will have cleared its last hurdle before construction.

As well, during the council meeting, the council agreed to pay nearly $1.4 million to three property owners for right-of-way and construction easements. The amount does not exceed the $4 million allocated for construction easements. Construction along Pioneer Street is expected to be complete by the summer of 2025.