County Partners with Tribe to fund road improvements in Geyserville

Sonoma County  and Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians are working together to leverage funds for north county road and bridge projects

Supervisor Mike McGuire commented, “Roads are a top County priority and we are looking for every available resource to improve their condition. In 2011, we raised the idea of working with the Tribe to leverage federal funding for roads and other infrastructure. This agreement brings $1.9 million dollars worth of federal funding to the North County between now and 2014 for road improvement and bridge projects and sidewalk construction in the Geyserville area. We are very appreciative of the Tribe’s partnership and we look forward to working together to leverage these dollars to improve County roads that lead to tribal lands. This is a tremendous opportunity for all involved.”

After the County and the Tribe agreed upon the eligible projects, both Tribal and County Public Works Departments work with the Federal Highway Administration to ensure the projects are granted funding through the Indian Reservation Road and Bridge Programs. The Indian Reservation Road and Bridge Programs are designed to address the transportation needs of tribes by providing funds for transportation infrastructure planning, design, construction, and maintenance. The programs are jointly administered by the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The projects the $1.9 million would fund are:

1) $200,000 in Summer 2012 for an overlay of Geyserville Avenue from US 101 to Highway 128 in Geyserville;

2) $750,000 to $1 million in Spring/Summer 2013 to pursue scour repairs of the Alexander Valley Road / Jimtown Bridge;

3) $50,000 for Sidewalks and Curbs Layout design in coordination with Caltrans in the Spring/Summer of 2013;

4) $400,000 for replacement of the storm sewer on Canyon Road in Spring/Summer of 2013;

5) $200,000 for overlay work on Healdsburg Avenue from the Healdsburg City Limits to US 101 at Lytton Springs Road (1.1 miles) in Spring/Summer 2014;

6) $100,000 for base repair and overlay for Moody Lane from Highway 128 to schools (0.11 miles).

Both Supervisor McGuire and Chairman Hopkins have been in discussions for several months about the IRR Funds and we believe this latest agreement will benefit all involved.