HomeMy WebLinkAbout062424 - Letter re: Grant proposal for Peninsula Trails Coalition of CoN�ssr Board of County Commissioners
A,- co 0 1820 Jefferson Street
'7' PO Box 1220
Port Townsend, WA 98368
O Kate Dean,District 1 Heidi Eisenhour,District 2 Greg Brotherton,District 3
7SHI N G`t
June 24, 2024
TO: T-Mobile Hometown Grants Program Review Committee
Jefferson County is writing to endorse the grant proposal submitted by the Peninsula Trails Coalition
(PTC) for funding toward the completion of the Hall Baetz Viewpoint(HBV) at the head of
Discovery Bay here in our county. Our county is one of the two primary jurisdictions through which
the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT) traverses the North Olympic Peninsula, including its eastern
starting point in the Main Street community of Port Townsend. The HBV project, which has been
reviewed and permitted by our staff, and will eventually be critical infrastructure within our ODT
corridor, is a vital linchpin in the planning and development of the overall ODT—so much so that
we awarded $20K in federal ARPA funds to PTC to support completion of the project.
We are also aware of the fact that the HBV project will serve as a noteworthy trailhead-type amenity
along the envisioned corridor far greater than just the ODT. This larger vision, being steadily
realized in many places across the country, incorporates the ODT and this Hall Baetz Viewpoint
project into the Puget Sound To Pacific (PS2P) Trail, the statewide Washington trail, and the 3,700-
mile-long cross-country Great American Rail-Trail. In pursuit of these broad visions, completion of
the HBV project will be an important step that will further influence completion of other remaining
missing pieces of trail, leveraging investments in this project for pursuit of associated projects on the
Peninsula and beyond.
The HBV Project will serve Jefferson County residents, visitors,travelers, and users of the Olympic
Discovery Trail, a 135-mile multiuse trail connecting four rural communities,three tribal
reservations, and several other rural enclaves across the Olympic Peninsula. It fits within the
regional PS2P Project which brings 14 jurisdictions together under a$16M federal RAISE grant to
identify, plan and design 34 different missing pieces in this overarching plan.
All these projects, once fully planned and designed, will require construction funding. With HBV
design and permitting completed and funding partially in place, it will be a leading example of
carrying all these projects through to completion. A T-Mobile Hometown Grant would provide a
substantial portion of full HBV funding, leading the way further forward by ensuring that
construction could proceed in late Summer, and Fall, of 2024. We urge your support of the project.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely.
Kate ean, Chair reg Brotherton Heidi Eisenhour
District 1 District 3 District 2
Phone(360) 385-9100 jeffbocc@co.jefferson.wa.us