The Oregon Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) McCord Creek project traffic delays continue to cause traffic backup on the Bridge of the Gods. Graphic courtesy of ODOT
The Oregon Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) McCord Creek project traffic delays continue to cause traffic backup on the Bridge of the Gods. Graphic courtesy of ODOT
CASCADE LOCKS — City Council met July 27 for updates on the city’s backlog of audits and the McCord Creek Bridge project.
The council also approved Kent Home and Building to repair the city hall roof for $50,242. Concerns included the repair timeline, whether warranty will be provided, and daily cleanup expectations. The roof is in poor shape and repairs are needed before this year’s rainy season.
Additionally, water system improvements are underway. City Public Works Director Sheldon Price did a walk-through with engineers and contractor representatives in a pre-construction meeting with Crestline Construction.
Audit update
Though the 2023/24 audit was slated to be complete by July, the process has once again been delayed, this time due to undocumented and unexplained payments of less than $15,000 from the U.S. Treasury.
Interim City Administrator Gordon Zimmerman explained that they could declare the funds as unknown and move forward, or continue seeking information on the payments. He reminded council the 2022-23 audit was approved with around $50,000 of unknown funds.
The council instructed Interim Chief Financial Officer Marianne Bump to keep looking until Wednesday, July 29, then send the findings to the auditors.
McCord Creek
Zimmerman also had some details regarding a traffic snarl created by the Oregon Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) McCord Creek Bridge Project for council.
The daily delays cause significant back-ups onto the Bridge of the Gods as people try to navigate the construction.
As previously reported by Columbia Gorge News, many folks know about the freeway delays and avoid the area, which hurts local businesses. According to ODOT’s timeline on its website, “When the new eastbound bridge opens, all travel lanes will be open during the daytime for the remainder of the summer.”
As previously reported, there are two freeway bridges, one for each direction of travel. ODOT is replacing only the eastbound bridge, which was constructed in 1962 and does not meet current safety standards. Goals are to remove a longstanding “dip” in the road surface, improve safety and increase earthquake resilience.
Travelers can expect periodic single-lane closures through fall of 2026.
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