Hood River-White Salmon Bridge Replacement Project to seek additional federal funds

The Hood River-White Salmon Bridge Authority (HRWSBA) is pursuing another round of federal funding to proactively address rising costs on the project to replace the Hood River-White Salmon Bridge.

At its regular bi-monthly meeting on Monday, the Bridge Authority authorized a $532 million request to the federal Bridge Investment Program, a U.S. Department of Transportation program that awards grants to large bridge projects around the country. A successful grant, in addition to funds already raised and outstanding targeted commitments, would secure a total of $1.12 billion in project funding.

One of the main factors driving the projected cost increase is sharp inflation in the heavy highway construction sector. Since the last project estimate of $520 million in October 2021, inflation in the sector has surged to 51.3%, according to the latest data from U.S. Department of Transportation.

Additionally, geotechnical site evaluations conducted earlier this year in the Columbia River revealed deeper-than-expected bedrock, which will require foundations on the new bridge to be around 90 feet deeper, requiring more advanced and sensitive construction techniques.

The timing of Monday’s action was driven by the project’s need to meet an Oct. 18 deadline for updating its application to the federal Bridge Investment Program. Knowing costs were increasing, the Bridge Authority requested an updated estimate reflecting industry trends and new site information. 

“We are early in the design phase and there are many unknowns, but we do know that we are facing some serious cost drivers,” said project director Mike Shannon.

The current $1.12 billion estimate reflects current market conditions and new information obtained.

“As we continue to progress through design, we will look for opportunities to drive down costs, as we aggressively pursue all funding possibilities,” Shannon added.

Cost estimates will be updated as the design process reaches key milestones including 30%, 60%, and upon final design.

“This is a challenging economic climate for all infrastructure projects,” said HRWSBA Co-Chair Mike Fox. “Over the past year we have made strong progress toward construction and have positioned ourselves for success, despite facing the same headwinds that are driving up costs across the industry.”

“Building a safe, seismically resilient bridge is our top priority,” Fox said. “The discovery of the deeper bedrock is significant, and we want to be proactive in addressing how it will affect cost as soon as we can. We have an obligation to our communities and partners to be transparent and clear about what it will take to build this bridge as we move further into the design phase.”

“Our priority remains delivering a bridge that meets the needs of all our partners and the public, in a fiscally responsible way,” said HRWSBA Co-Chair Jacob Anderson. “By choosing a progressive design-build approach, we can work with the builder during the design process to find ways to lower cost. If we can’t come to a mutual cost agreement, the Bridge Authority has the option to bid out the project in a competitive procurement process.”

In January of 2024, the project was awarded a $200 million grant from the federal INFRA program. The original funding strategy aimed for a more balanced split between local, state and federal partners, however with increased costs, the project looks to leverage more federal infrastructure funding to the allowable maximum of 80%.

The overall cost increase highlights the need for fully realized commitments of $125 million each from Oregon and Washington, in order to satisfy federal matching requirements. Current commitments include $75 million from Washington and $20 million from Oregon. Local funding will come through a $105 million federal TIFIA loan, to be repaid by future tolling revenue.

HRWSBA Commissioner Marla Keethler said the project couldn’t have reached this point without strong support from the community, and both state and federal legislators.

“We continue to work closely with our legislative partners to reach our funding goals for the project,” she said. “We are incredibly grateful for their ongoing support of this project as we head into 2025, and look forward to another year of strong progress.”