WASHINGTON, D.C.—A total of $19,326,729 for Second District community projects were funded in the Fiscal Year 2024 spending package on Friday, March 8, and now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The monies will be used for fifteen projects local elected officials and community leaders identified to Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) as critical to their communities.
On Friday, March 8, the United States Senate approved the package by a final vote of 75 to 22 which was approved by the United States House of Representatives on Wednesday by a 339 to 85 vote.
Rep. Larsen applauded the inclusion of earmarks in the bipartisan six-bill spending package and emphasized the importance of investing in local community projects.
“My priority in shaping spending bills is to invest in Northwest Washington communities to create more jobs, keep the economy moving and improve vital services residents rely on,” said Larsen. “I will continue to champion these critical projects for local communities to strengthen infrastructure, build a cleaner, safer and more accessible transportation network, break down barriers to services for working families and students, and create more jobs in Northwest Washington.”
For the third year in a row, Larsen secured earmark funding for important community projects. In last year’s omnibus spending package, Larsen secured more than $31.5 million for fifteen Second District projects, and $10 million for 15 projects in 2022.
For 2024 Representative Larsen secured the following earmarks for Northwest Washington communities:
Investing in Roads and Bridges
- City of Lynden’s Bradley Road Safety Improvements – This project will construct safety improvements and multimodal access on an increasingly busy road connecting the City’s high school campus and a new middle school campus. ($1,616,729)
- City of Everett’s Edgewater Creek Bridge Replacement – This project will finish replacing a structurally deficient and seismically vulnerable bridge over Edgewater Creek on West Mukilteo Boulevard. ($850,000)
- City of Everett’s Point Industrial Center (EPIC) Green Bridge – This project will support pre-construction costs for a two-lane bridge with bike lanes and pedestrian walkways, which would improve access to the EPIC Green commercial and industrial development area that the City plans to use as a green technology hub. ($850,000)
- Skagit County Public Works’s Concrete Sauk Valley Road Bank Stabilization – This project will stabilize a rural road along the Skagit River that serves as an important connector and alternate route for two major state highways in Northwest Washington. ($500,000)
Investing in Water and Flood Protection Infrastructure
- Lummi Indian Nation’s Slater Road Elevation Project – This project will elevate approximately 1,900 linear feet of Slater Road by 12 feet to reduce flooding and congestion. ($8,000,000)
- City of Stanwood’s Diking District 7 Fish Passage and Diking Improvement Project – This project will rebuild a failing dike that threatens to flood the entire City of Stanwood and the surrounding agricultural land and restore habitat for a variety of fish species. ($850,000)
- City of Lynnwood’s Scriber Creek Trail Redevelopment Phase 3 – This project will complete redevelopment (Phase 3) of the existing Scriber Creek Trail, which is frequently inaccessible due to flooding. ($500,000)
- Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District’s Division 7 Water Reservoir Replacement Project – This project will replace a reservoir that does not meet earthquake safety requirements with two reservoirs that meet these standards. ($220,000)
Investing in Community Services
- City of Mount Vernon’s Library Commons Project – This project will support construction costs for the facility’s community room space, a community technology center, and educational rooms for technology training and STEM education. ($3,000,000)
- City of Ferndale’s Civic Campus – This project will support construction costs for Ferndale’s new civic center, including a new city hall, municipal court and public meeting space. ($1,000,000)
- Boys & Girls Clubs of Snohomish County’s Coupeville Boys & Girls Club Gymnasium – This project will construct a new 8,000-square-foot gymnasium at the Coupeville Boys & Girls Club, a new Club location that is scheduled to open later this year. ($500,000)
- Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office’s Rapid DNA System – This project will obtain and utilize a Rapid DNA system to enable the office and local partner law enforcement agencies to better access DNA technology for identification of suspects, exonerate innocent persons and improve public safety. ($440,000)
Investing in Education and Workforce Development
- Northwest Career & Technical Academy’s @ Whatcom Extension – This project will construct a branch workforce development skills center campus to support expanded career technical education programming for high school-aged students in Whatcom County. ($850,000)
- Rise Up Academy’s ARISE Development – This project will invest in pre-constructions costs to expand an early learning center and provide 32 affordable housing units. ($500,000)
- Northwest Resource Innovation Center’s Network – Sedro-Woolley Innovation for Tomorrow (SWIFT) Center – This project will renovate and equip its new Innovation Center at the SWIFT Center, which will create a workforce training and manufacturing incubator. ($500,000)
What WA-02 community leaders and stakeholders are saying about the funding Larsen secured for their projects
Mount Vernon Mayor Peter Donovan on the Mount Vernon Library Commons Project: “The City’s mission of taking this $55 million civic project—which fulfills local, state and federal transportation goals—from a concept, to a fully constructed community gem; would have been daunting without Representative Larsen’s ongoing, and steadfast support in Washington D.C. The City of Mount Vernon is deeply appreciative of the Congressman’s valiant efforts to champion this legacy project that combines lifelong learning and equitable opportunities, with vital regional EV infrastructure.”
Ferndale Mayor Greg Hansen on the Ferndale Civic Campus: “This is a gamechanger for Ferndale. Our community has worked hard to invest in our future as a City, and this funding builds a bridge to that future. We are enormously grateful to Rep. Rick Larsen for his support of the Civic Campus project.”
Lummi Indian Business Council Chairman Anthony Hillaire on the Elevate Slater Road Project: “The benefits of this project will be overwhelming to the economy of the Lummi Nation, The City of Ferndale, and all of Whatcom County. The Flooding of the Nooksack River limits Slater Road to one-lane access or complete road closure, turning our reservation into an island. This prevents our people from receiving critical medical care and acquiring necessities. The flooding of the Nooksack River has become an annual occurrence and has endangered and caused economic hardship to our community.”
Lake Whatcom Water & Sewer District Board of Commissioners President Anthony Hillaire on the Division 7 Water Reservoir Replacement Project: “Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District would like to thank Representative Larsen for facilitating this Community Funding Project grant. The District is committed to proactively operating its water and sewer systems in a manner that ensures continuity of its critical services. This funding is an instrumental component for the replacement of an aging water reservoir with two new reservoirs designed to meet current seismic standards and outfitted with the ShakeAlert® earthquake warning system—contributing to a safer, more robust, reliable drinking water system for our community.”
Lynden Mayor Scott Korthuis on the Bradley Road Safety Improvements Project: “The City of Lynden appreciates the efforts of Representative Larsen and his staff in working closely with the city and including our Bradley Road project as one of his capital requests. Being able to complete this project with its proximity to schools will increase the safety of students in the area and have a positive impact on congestion in the area.”
Northwest Career & Technical Academy Director Lynette Brower on the NCTA @ Whatcom Extension Project: “Receiving the Community Project Funding will begin the infrastructure phase towards establishing the Whatcom County Skills Center. The Skills Center will provide industry-based preparatory programs for students in their junior and senior years of high school where they are able launch into their career and educational pathway simultaneously. This is a great first step. We are committed to see our students thrive by twenty-five!”
Whatcom County Sheriff Donnell “Tank” Tanksley on the Rapid DNA System: “The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office is grateful to Congressman Larsen for championing this important community safety initiative. With Congressional approval of funding of the Rapid DNA system, we will be able to more quickly investigate serious crimes, identify suspects, and protect our community. Rapid DNA testing will allow us to rely on forensic science to generate investigative leads and identify criminal suspects, reducing the opportunity for racial or other biases. It will improve law enforcement efficiency and community safety by helping us more quickly identify leads and suspects, while exonerating those who are innocent. This is outstanding news for Whatcom County and our office’s continuing pursuit of excellence, integrity, and teamwork.”
Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin on the Edgewater Creek Bridge Replacement Project: “Replacing this old, seismically vulnerable bridge is critical for the safety and resiliency of our community. I thank Representative Larsen for securing the funds needed to begin construction on this important infrastructure project.”
Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin on the EPIC Green Bridge Project: “I am grateful for Representative Larsen’s continued leadership in supporting growth and opportunity for the City of Everett and cities in our neighboring communities. These federal funds will enable us to develop engineering and design plans for a new bridge to access the Everett Point Industrial Center. The bridge is key to opening this underutilized riverfront property to economic development, bringing new jobs and opportunity for a thriving and more prosperous Everett.”
Stanwood Mayor Sid Roberts on the Diking District 7 Fish Passage and Diking Improvement Project: “Congressman Larsen has been a vital help and crucial supporter of the Stanwood dike repair project. These funds, his leadership, as well as the assistance from his office, have helped bridge the financial gap and make completion of this needed dike rebuild possible.”
Rise Up Academy CEO/Executive Director Dr. Paul A. Stoot Sr. on the ARISE Development Project: “On behalf of the current and future BIPOC students and families of the ARISE Development project, we are grateful to Congressman Rick Larsen for championing this cause. This funding gives Rise Up Academy the opportunity to take the children and families that we serve from Perceptions to Promise, Problems to Promise and Poverty to Promise. Rep. Larsen’s leadership and financial support provides dollars necessary for the ARISE Development to eliminate barriers that prevent students of color from achieving educational goals and future dreams. Together, we serve the Whole child, the Whole family and the Whole community.”
Board of Skagit County Commissioners on the Concrete Sauk Valley Road Bank Stabilization Project: “We are very grateful to Congressman Larsen for championing this critical infrastructure project in Skagit County. Since 2001, the Skagit River has migrated over 1,200 feet northward along, and parallel to, Concrete-Sauk Valley Road, resulting in riverbank erosion and threatening a partial closure of the road. This funding will allow us to start work on stabilization improvements of the riverbank and protect future access of a vital transit link in eastern Skagit County.”
Lynnwood Mayor Christine Frizzell on the Scriber Creek Trail Redevelopment: “This appropriation for the Scriber Creek Trail Redevelopment Phase 3 Project will allow us to extend a safe connection to the Lynnwood City Center Station providing Lynnwood and Snohomish County residents better transit options. We are grateful for Representative Larsen’s steadfast commitment to transportation infrastructure and being a champion for multi-modal connections.”
Northwest Innovation Resource Center Executive Director Diane Kamionka on NWIRC’s Innovation Center – SWIFT Center: “Establishing the innovation center at the SWIFT Center in Skagit County provides resources for the area’s entrepreneurs and small businesses who are pursuing success in the digital driven economy. We are very grateful to Congressman Larsen for recognizing and prioritizing this opportunity for building a more competitive and thriving region.”
Boys & Girls Club Executive Director Bill Tsoukalas on the Coupeville Boys & Girls Club Gymnasium Project: “The Coupeville Boys & Girls Club is very appreciative of Congressman Rick Larsen’s work to secure funding to build an 8,000 square foot gymnasium for the new Coupeville Boys & Girls Club. This is the second phase of a three-phase project for youth which will eventually include ball fields. The gymnasium will be a cornerstone for sports and fitness activities for kids and adults and also serve as an emergency location/shelter for the Town of Coupeville and Central Whidbey Island. Providing safe and affordable childcare for youth and families is vital to the quality of life of communities.”
Author: Lynnwood Times Staff
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