New sidewalks have come to a section of NE Halsey Street in Wood Village, thanks to funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. Two different projects built sidewalks while improving safety and drainage.
The first project covered the south side of NE Halsey St from NE Birch Ave to the entrance to City Park. The ditch was replaced with a pipe and filled in up to road level, and a new sidewalk was placed. At the entrance to City Park, a large concrete vault was placed under the surface to receive and treat all the storm water that runs through the previous ditch.
The water quality vault was funded by a Community Block Development Grant received by the City of Wood Village from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Other funding for the project came from an ARRA grant to Wood Village. The project was fully managed by Multnomah County on behalf of Wood Village.
The second project covered the north side of NE Halsey St, from Wood Village city limits to NE 244th Ave, as well as the south side of Halsey in front of City Park. It included additional sidewalks on NE Stark St, near Mt Hood Community College.
This project was primarily a safety improvement and placed concrete curb and sidewalk for most of the location. In areas where the work intersected existing driveways and streets, the concrete was replaced with asphalt to accommodate adjoining elevations. This asphalt will be replaced with concrete when the road is widened in the future. Modular block retaining walls were used in a few locations.
Because this was a federal grant program, the Oregon Department of Transportation administered the contract. Multnomah County oversaw the day-to-day work.