In a word: funding

The amount of federal and state funding for street maintenance has all but disappeared. When federal revenue-sharing ended in 1987, Walla Walla lost about $757,000 per year. When I-695 passed in 1999, vehicle tab fees collected by the state were reduced, and Walla Walla lost about $1.2 million per year.

That same year, Walla Walla lost $347,000 annually due to the elimination of Sales and Use Equalization Funding, which was a state sales tax that was distributed to cities based on population. Overall, in the past 32 years, these changes have reduced our potential revenue by $55,164,000 — an average of over $1.7 million each year.

When this dedicated federal and state funding dropped, it fell to the cities to fund street maintenance. This money has to come from the General Fund, so Streets has to compete with other departments for funds — including Police, Fire, Library, and Parks and Recreation — because there is limited money to go around.  Increasing the Streets budget would mean reducing City services elsewhere.

Cities have a variety of options for increasing their budget to maintain roadways. Many of these involve adding revenue through taxes.

Options Walla Walla currently uses to obtain funds for street repair:

• Sales Tax:  A sales tax of up to 0.2% adds about $1 million annually. The tax is limited to two terms, and may not be in effect longer than 10 years unless approved by voters. The City began collecting this tax on July 1, 2012, after Walla Wallans approved it. In the November 2021 General Election, voters renewed collection of the tax for another 10 years. 
• Real Estate Excise Tax: A tax of one-quarter of 1% (0.0025%) on sales of real estate is available to fund public works projects. Under Growth Management Act statutes, Walla Walla could levy a second 0.0025%, but this would require a vote by the citizens.
• Property Tax: Property taxes of $0.15 per $1,000 assessed value yield approximately $300,000 annually. The levy may be for multiple years if funding debt service on bonds.

Options Walla Walla does not currently use:

• Local Option Vehicle Tax: This adds a $20 license fee per vehicle, which could raise about $300,000 annually for Walla Walla. It doesn’t require a public vote, but it does require the formation of a Transportation Improvement District.
• Gas Tax: This would require countywide voter approval.
• Street Utility Tax or Fee: Street utility assessing a $30 annual fee per residence would yield approximately $300,000 annually. This currently is not constitutional in Washington due to the definition of tax in the state. Legislative changes would be necessary.
• Property Tax Levy Lid Lift: This would add $0.50 per $1,000 assessed property valuation. It is only good for one year. Legislative changes to the levy lid lift would be needed — otherwise there would be no funding to pay back the bonds.
• Banked Levy Capacity: This is a way local taxing districts can use reserved taxing ability to increase taxes beyond 1% annually. Could raise $275,000.

An additional method for funding street work:

• Local Improvement District (LID): LIDs are a way neighborhoods can invest in improving their infrastructure. These programs provide a way to finance needed work through long-term financing at a relatively low interest rate, with funds matched by the City. LIDs are commonly used for residential streets that don't qualify as TBD or IRRP projects.

The City's Street budget is about $2.9 million per year. But that doesn't mean we can put $2.9 million worth of asphalt on the roads. That total includes expenses such as vehicle maintenance, pay for workers, fuel, and seasonal snow and ice control.

Walla Walla's Transportation Benefit District (TBD) 0.2% sales tax generates about $1 million annually for street projects. These funds can only be used on transportation-improvement projects, which are selected based on feedback from residents. (Click here to view the relevant sections of the City's 2011 resident survey, in which residents were polled regarding the streets they felt were in most need of repair.) The following map shows the TBD-funded projects the City has completed since 2013:

The City's Infrastructure Repair and Replacement Program (IRRP) generates about $4.5 million each year. These funds can only be used on roads with the failing trifecta: failing water lines, failing sewer lines, and failing streets. This map shows the IRRP projects we've completed since 2013:

Money for the annual Streets budget comes from a variety of sources:

• Cable Franchise Fees
• Right-of-way Permits
• Bicycle Licenses
• Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax
• Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax – Bike Path
• Multimodal Transportation City Tax
• Right-of-way Inspections
• Street Cut Repairs
• Miscellaneous Services
• Leaf Pickup
• Interest and Fees / Insurance Recoveries /Private funding / Other
• IRRP Utility Excise Fee Transfer from General Fund
• Transfer from General Fund - street operations

The simple answer is that the City doesn’t have the budget to dedicate to this roadway. 

In 2019, when the Paving for Pizza event took place, the estimated cost to rebuild Highland Road was $1.9 million. The City typically pursues funding from state, federal, or other grants to pay for expensive projects like this. Unfortunately, residential streets such as Highland aren't eligible for grant funding. (Only arterial roads — like Rose Street, Plaza Way, Isaacs Avenue, Howard Street, etc., are grant eligible.) This means the money needed to repair or rebuild Highland Road would have to come from Public Works' budget or one of its programs.

Could Transportation Benefit District (TBD) funds be used on Highland Road?

A potential TBD project must be included on the TBD priority list; it must have available (or strong potential for) funding; and it must be coordinated with other needs, such as utility replacements, streetlights, traffic signals, etc.

Highland Road doesn’t currently score high enough on the list of TBD-eligible streets to make it a top priority repair project. And because the utilities beneath the road are in good condition, it isn’t an eligible Infrastructure Repair and Replacement Plan (IRRP) project.

Below are are some of the results of the resident poll we did when planning the current TBD. Even back in 2012, Highland was tied for the least-traveled road among the top 25 on the residents' list (denoted by the "ADT's" — average daily traffic — category), ranking 21st overall when factoring in poll results and traffic volume. The roadways that ranked highest on this list are the ones we have applied, or will soon apply, the TBD funds toward.

This should pay for about 72 tons of asphalt. That's enough to pave about 7,100 square feet of pavement at a thickness of 1.5” (or 590’ of one travel lane), or 5,300 square feet of pavement at a thickness of 2” (or 445’ of one travel lane).

It depends on the condition of the road base below the asphalt. For some roads, it might last four or five years; for a surface like Highland Road, it will likely only last a couple of years.

A local improvement district (LID) could be formed to pay for reconstruction. If the majority of property owners within the benefiting area choose to participate, the property owners essentially take out a 10- to 20-year, tax-free loan to pay for it.

Probably not — but maybe... In any case, City crews reduce the number of potholes in our streets almost every day — over 5,000 this year, and counting.

To report a pothole you've seen, email pwinfo@wallawallawa.gov.