TO: Mayor and City Council
THROUGH: Krishna Namburi, City Manager
FROM: Brian D. Martin, PE, Public Works Director
Gretchen Bennett, Acting in Capacity Community Services Director
SUBJECT:
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Cooperative Improvement Agreement with the Oregon Department of Transportation for the OR22 - Center Street Bridge (Salem) Seismic Retrofit Project.
Ward(s): All Wards
Councilor(s): All Councilors
Neighborhood(s): All Neighborhoods
Result Area(s): Safe, Reliable and Efficient Infrastructure; Welcoming and Livable Community.
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SUMMARY:
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The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) is planning seismic retrofit improvements to the Center Street Bridge over the Willamette River to ensure operational functionality following a major seismic event. Phase 1 of the project will retrofit the bridge and its eastside ramps, which will have impacts to Riverfront Park and Wallace Marine Park during construction. City staff have successfully negotiated an agreement with ODOT to mitigate impacts from the project on the parks, public events, natural resources, and parking. The agreement also allows the City to grant ODOT temporary easements for staging and construction access on City property.
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ISSUE:
Shall the City Council authorize the City Manager to execute the attached Cooperative Improvement Agreement with ODOT for the OR22 - Center Street Bridge (Salem) Seismic Retrofit Project?
RECOMMENDATION:
recommendation
Authorize the City Manager to execute the attached Cooperative Improvement Agreement with ODOT for the OR22 - Center Street Bridge (Salem) Seismic Retrofit Project.
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FACTS AND FINDINGS:
The OR22 - Center Street Bridge (Salem) Seismic Retrofit Project will necessitate ODOT and its contractor to temporarily occupy portions of City property and rights-of-way, resulting in unavoidable impacts to City parks, public events, natural resources, and parking. City staff engaged with ODOT for over 24 months identifying ways to minimize project impacts and developing strategies for mitigating unavoidable consequences. Earlier this year, City staff determined that ODOT’s project design plans had minimized bridge construction impacts as much as feasible, while still allowing the bridge work to proceed in 2026. With the reduced impact area, ODOT determined that project impacts to Wallace Marine Park and Riverfront Park met the threshold for a de minimis finding - meaning the impacts would be minor and not adversely affect the parks’ recreational use or character. In May, 2025, the City Manager concurred with ODOT’s de minimis impact findings and provided an informational report to City Council. The de minimis findings and City concurrence allowed ODOT to proceed with final design of the project, begin the City permitting process, and negotiate with the City on compensation for the park impacts.
Negotiations on compensation for the park impacts are complete, and City staff believe that the amounts included in the agreement are fair and reasonable.
Key highlights of the agreement include:
• Temporary Easements - The City will grant temporary easements to ODOT in Riverfront Park and Wallace Marine Park for the duration of the project, as shown in Attachment 1.
• Tree Removal and Replanting - The agreement includes the removal of approximately 120 City-owned trees, as necessary for construction. ODOT will replant trees and compensate the City for the appraised value of the trees, minus costs for replanting and installing a cellular soil system within the reconstructed Riverfront Park north parking lot.
• Parking Lot Reconstruction - ODOT will reconstruct the impacted portion of the Riverfront Park north parking lot to current standards, including the installation of a stormwater treatment facility. Additionally, ODOT will install a cellular soil system and add sand-set pavers to support the long-term health and vigor of the replanted trees in the parking lot.
• Park Ambassadors and Shuttle Service - ODOT will provide funding to the City for two related purposes: to have staff serve as park ambassadors during major permitted special events at Riverfront Park, and to operate a shuttle service to offsite parking during those events.
• Parking Mitigation - ODOT will address parking impacts resulting from their use of a portion of the Riverfront Park north parking lot. This includes compensating the City for converting permit and metered parking to free parking for park users, as well as compensating for permit parking spots in Riverfront Park occupied by ODOT during construction. ODOT will also provide free parking at Marion Parkade on days of major permitted events.
• Lease Extension - ODOT will lease the portion of the Wallace Marine Boat Ramp parking lot within State Highway right-of-way to the City for 10 additional years at no cost, extending the current lease to 2043.
The project will also replace an existing water transmission line on the bridge with a larger seismically resilient water transmission line. The new and improved water transmission line will help maintain water service to West Salem after a major earthquake. The water line work is covered under a separate agreement and agenda item.
BACKGROUND:
ODOT’s project to retrofit the Center Street bridge over the Willamette River aims to ensure the bridge remains serviceable following a major seismic event. The project will be completed in two phases. Phase 1 will retrofit the sections of the bridge over the Willamette River and east of the river, with construction scheduled to begin in 2026. Phase 2 will involve retrofitting or replacing the section of the bridge west of the Willamette River, which is currently unfunded.
Throughout the design process for Phase 1, ODOT worked with City staff During design ODOT conducted an extensive public outreach campaign, including:
• Door-to-door canvassing with over 300 in-person contacts.
• Over 50 presentations to neighborhood associations, community and business groups, and large employers such as Salem-Keizer School District, Gilbert House, Salem Health, etc.
• In-person and online open houses.
• Periodic updates to an Interested Parties List, with over 550 parties signed up.
• Social media updates (Facebook, Instagram, NextDoor)
• In-person tabling events in West Salem and Dallas.
Public outreach will continue throughout construction of the project.
Allen Dannen, PE,
City Engineer
Rob Romanek,
Parks Planning Manager
Attachments:
1. Attachment 1 - Cooperative Improvement Agreement: OR22: Center Street Bridge (Salem), Bridge No. 00123K, City of Salem