THIRD DRAFT Funding and Phasing MOU 1 5/2/2018
Puget Sound Gateway Program
SR 167 and SR 509 Completion Projects
Local Funding and Phasing
Memorandum of Understanding
1. Participating Parties
In addition to the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), the following Local
Agency Partners constitute those parties currently participating in this Memorandum of
Understanding pertaining to the local contribution requirement for the Puget Sound Gateway
Program (Gateway Program):
Port of Seattle
Port of Tacoma
King County
Pierce County
City of Algona
City of Auburn
City of Des Moines
City of Edgewood
City of Federal Way
City of Fife
City of Kent
City of Milton
City of Pacific
City of Puyallup
City of SeaTac
City of Sumner
City of Tacoma
2. Background and Purpose of MOU
In July 2015, the Washington State Legislature and Governor Inslee acted to fund the Gateway
Program through the Connecting Washington revenue package. The Gateway Program is
comprised of two projects: the State Route 167 Completion Project and the State Route 509
Completion Project. These projects provide essential connections to the ports of Tacoma and
Seattle and will help ensure people and goods move more reliably through the Puget Sound
region.
WSDOT is the lead project sponsor and is responsible for the planning, design and construction
of the Gateway Program, as well as for its overall financial management. The program has been
guided from its beginning by a Joint SR 167/SR 509 Executive Committee (Executive Committee),
comprised of elected and appointed representatives of local jurisdictions served by the Gateway
Program (Algona, Auburn, Burien, Des Moines, Edgewood, Federal Way, Fife, Kent, Milton,
Pacific, Puyallup, SeaTac, Sumner, Tacoma, King County, Pierce County, Port of Seattle, and Port
of Tacoma) as well as Federal Highway Administration, Washington State Transportation
Commission, Washington State Department of Transportation, Puget Sound Regional Council,
Sound Transit, Pierce Transit, and the Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board.
Funding for the Puget Sound Gateway Program has been approved to come from the state gas
tax, tolls, local contributions, and potential federal and state grants. Total funding for the
Gateway Program, from the 2015 Connecting Washington transportation funding package, is
$1.875 billion, which includes local contributions of $130 million. The program has been funded
THIRD DRAFT Funding and Phasing MOU 2 5/2/2018
over a 16-year timeline. Based on the legislative funding plan, major construction for a first
stage would occur from 2019 through 2025, and a second stage from 2026 through 2030. Local
contributions will be needed to construct both stage one and stage two projects.
In the 2017 Legislative session new language was enacted (Engrossed Senate Bill 5096 §
306(20)(b)) requiring development of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the
Local Agency Partners and WSDOT. The legislature directed that:
The secretary of transportation must develop a memorandum of understanding with
local project stakeholders that identifies a schedule for stakeholders to provide local
matching funds for the Puget Sound Gateway project. Criteria for eligibility of local
match includes matching funds and equivalent in-kind contributions including, but not
limited to, land donations. The memorandum of understanding must be finalized by July
1, 2018. The department must submit a copy of the memorandum of understanding to
the transportation committees of the legislature and report regularly on the status.
To this end, the Executive Committee of the Puget Sound Gateway Program convened a Funding
and Phasing Subcommittee (Subcommittee) to develop a MOU that summarizes their planned
future commitments and planned timing of those commitments to contribute to the SR 167 and
SR 509 projects.
The Subcommittee goals include:
Support efforts to build the Gateway projects on or ahead of schedule
Create successful local partnerships
Obtain sufficient local funding to build the Puget Sound Gateway projects
Time grant-funding projects to support the project delivery schedule
The construct of local funding participation, when authorized by the legislative bodies of the
relevant agencies through a series of forthcoming interlocal agreements, is based on the
following projections:
SR 167
SR 509
TOTAL
Port contributions
$30 million
$30 million
$60 million
Federal INFRA grant
$10 million
$10 million
$20 million
Local agency partner
match
$10 million
$10 million
$20 million
Other Grants (PSRC,
FMSIB, TIB)
$20 million
$10 million
$30 million
Total
$70 million
$60 million
$130 million
3. Local Funding Strategy
A key element of the local funding strategy, is to identify projects within the Gateway Program
that provide clear and measurable benefits to local jurisdictions. In the Gateway Program, these
are called “Local Nexus Projects,” designed to:
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Create a positive business case for Local Agency Partners by focusing on the parts of the
program that are most relevant and important to local jurisdictions
Leverage the potential to access significant grant funding to support local funding
assumptions
In support of the local funding strategy, Local Agency Partners shall:
Participate, co-fund match, and submit grant applications with support from
Subcommittee staff, as identified in Section 6 of this MOU
Combine local monetary and in-kind contributions and project funds to ensure fully-
funded applications, as identified in Section 6 of this MOU
Support the grant effort and avoid competition with the local projects in the year of
application
The following Local Nexus Projects have been identified within the north (SR 509) and south (SR
167) segments of the Gateway Program:
Gateway North (SR 509)
Gateway South (SR 167)
188
th
South Ramps
Meridian West Ramps
SeaTac Access, with Ramps to 28
th
/24
th
Avenue South
54
th
Avenue East Ramps
Veterans Drive Extension
Interurban Trail
Lake to Sound Trail
Valley Avenue West Ramps
Port of Tacoma Access/SR 509 Spur
70
th
Avenue E Bridge Relocation
If Local Nexus, INFRA, and any other pending grant projects become fully funded, these projects
will contribute substantially toward the Legislative requirement for local match. Funding
commitments will be achieved via an interlocal agreement from each signing party up to the
amounts presented in MOU. Local Agency Partner signatories to this MOU understand that once
the local contribution requirements set forth in ESB 5096 ($130 million) is achieved, that Local
Agency Partners will not be required to commit to additional funds beyond what is outlined in
this MOU. If additional grant funding or additional funds from other sources are obtained that
fulfill the $130 million local contribution requirement, the Secretary of Transportation and the
Executive Committee will review and determine to either reduce local agency partner match
payments, or recommend expanding scope of the Gateway Program, and amend each signing
party’s interlocal agreement accordingly .
4. Local Participation Policy
The Joint Executive Committee has agreed to a funding and phasing policy that structures local
agency partner match requirements to be commensurate with the benefits accrued from the
project at a local level. This policy states that:
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All local agency partners accrue some benefit from the Puget Sound Gateway Program.
Partners receiving fewer benefits, however, are not expected to contribute as much as
partners who receive more benefits. Direct benefits are those that most quantifiable, but
there are other components of value that include indirect, strategic and policy/social
benefits. Both direct and indirect benefits will be assessed as part of the consideration of
local contributions, because they are more easily quantifiable than strategic and
policy/social benefits.
All Local Agency Partner signatories of this MOU expect to seek approval of interlocal
agreements to contribute a match to be applied to Local Nexus Projects at a level that reflects
their respective anticipated level of benefit, as identified in Section 6 of this MOU.
5. Benefit Assessment Methodology
The proposed financial participation by each partner is based on a general, qualitative
assessment of the net benefits expected to be received by full completion of the Gateway
Program. The assessment includes the following metrics, based on available project data and
transportation modeling outputs:
Direct transportation linkages. The location of direct access points for new limited
access highways or other transportation infrastructure that benefits the community.
Effects on local sales taxes. The impacts of the projects to sales tax receipts, both in
terms of one-time construction sales taxes for the project, and ongoing sales taxes from
impacts to commercial uses.
Travel time savings. Overall travel time savings for local car and truck traffic associated
with the projects.
Traffic diversion from local streets. The diversion of, or increase in, traffic on local
arterials due to the project, with associated positive impacts to traffic safety and local
road maintenance.
Effects on local employment. The potential effects of improved accessibility are
reviewed, particularly in the context of access to new or potential employment uses.
Effects on developable residential lands. The potential impacts of changes in traffic
flow and accessibility on residential land development, with a focus on areas within the
jurisdiction that are available for redevelopment.
Effects on developable employment lands. The potential impacts of changes in traffic
flow and accessibility on the development or redevelopment of commercial and
industrial lands.
Achievement of local policy goals. The alignment of the WSDOT Gateway Program with
local plans and policies.
Environmental and social benefits. Environmental and social benefits specifically linked
to these projects, including upgrades to pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, and
wetlands and riparian restoration.
The approach and findings of the benefits assessments have been provided to the Local Agency
Partners.
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6. Local Jurisdiction Anticipated Contributions to the Program
Based on results from the benefit assessment described in Section 5, contributions for each of
the Local Agency Partners were determined by project stage in the tables below. Following
execution of this MOU, interlocal agreements will be drafted for subsequent approval.
Anticipated contributions only become binding commitments when embedded in interlocal
agreements, and the conditions therein are approved by the proposed funding entity. Interlocal
agreements between WSDOT and the respective Local Agency Partner must be in place for a
project prior to issuance of the Request for Proposals (RFP) for any proposed construction
contract. The Interlocal agreements will become binding commitments, within the statutory
authority of the Local Agency Partner, and will define the schedule of local match payments
expected over the duration of each construction project stage.
WSDOT will exercise due diligence to develop and construct each project on schedule within the
Gateway Program to the best of its abilities. Local Agency Partners will participate in project
development reviews and project meetings in support of the Gateway Program.
If grant pursuits identified in the Stage 1 and Stage 2 tables below are not achieved sufficient to
meet the $130 million local contribution, additional grants will be pursued from the funding
programs listed or from other funding programs that may become available over the life of the
Gateway Program. If Local Nexus Projects go to construction without planned grants, the Local
Agency Partner match funds will still be provided by agreement with WSDOT. If it is determined
that a Local Nexus Project cannot be fully funded, WSDOT will review options with the Executive
Committee. If an official decision is determined by the Executive Committee and the Secretary
of Transportation that the Local Nexus Project is not to be included in a construction project, the
Local Agency Partner match may be withdrawn.
Stage 1 Grant Pursuits for Local Nexus Projects
Project
Estimated
Construction
Cost
Grant Target
Amount
Target Due
Mo/Year
Anticipated
Construction
Expenditure
Local Agency
Partner
Match
Partner Nexus
70
th
Avenue
E/Interurban
Trail
$32,245,600
$5,000,000
Mar 2018
2019-2021
$800,000
$500,000
$3,000,000
Fife
Tacoma
Port of Tacoma
$5,000,000
Aug 2018
2019-2021
$1,000,000
Fife
$1,400,000
Mar 2018
2019-2021
Fife
Veterans
Drive/ SR516
Interchange
$33,800,000
$4,500,000
Apr 2018
2021-2025
$1,000,000
Kent
$5,000,000
Aug 2020
2021-2025
$1,000,000
Kent
SeaTac Access
$176,883,500
$4,500,000
Apr 2018
2021-2025
$2,000,000
SeaTac (ROW
in lieu)
Port of Tacoma
Access/509
Spur
$323,042,000
$4,500,000
Apr 2018
2021-2025
$1,500,000
$3,000,000
Tacoma
Port of Tacoma
$5,000,000
Mar 2020
2021-2025
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All Gateway
Program
$20,000,000*
Nov 2017
2019-2021
SR 167 Stage 1
Jan 2021
2021-2025
$9,000,000
Port of Tacoma
SR 509 Stage 1
Jan 2021
2021-2025
$15,000,000
$500,000
Port of Seattle
(expected in
2023-2025)
Des Moines
Total Stage 1
$54,900,000
$38,300,000
$93,000,000
Stage 2 Future Grant Pursuits for Local Nexus Projects
Project
Estimated
Construction
Cost
Grant Target
Amount
Target Due
Mo/Year
Anticipated
Construction
Expenditure
Local Agency
Partner
Match
Partner Nexus
Meridian
Avenue
Interchange
$3,000,000
2022
2026-2030
$2,000,000
Puyallup
Valley Avenue
Interchange
$3,000,000
2022
2026-2030
$2,000,000
Pierce County
188
th
Street
Interchange
improvements
TBD
2023
2026-2030
TBD
SR 167 Stage 2
$4,000,000
2022
2026-2030
$500,000
Edgewood
(ROW in lieu)
Sumner
Jan 2026
2026-2030
$15,000,000
Port of Tacoma
SR 509 Stage 2
$4,000,000
2024
2026-2030
Jan 2026
2026-2030
$15,000,000
Port of Seattle
Total Stage 2
$14,000,000
$34,500,000
$48,500,000
Total Stages
1 & 2
$68,900,000
$72,800,000
$141,700,000
* – If no INFRA, apply for FHWA BUILD grant for Port of Tacoma Access (SR 509 Spur)
TBD – grant funding program pursuit to be determined in future
7. Terms and Termination
7.1. Amendments
This MOU shall be periodically reviewed and evaluated regarding the need for modifications or
amendments by mutual determination of WSDOT and Local Agency Partners. Amendments to the
MOU shall be required if program funding assumptions need to be adjusted that affect the ability to
construct the identified Local Nexus Projects or the ability to achieve the $130 million local
contribution. Such amendments shall only be binding if they are in writing and signed by authorized
personnel from all of the Local Agency Partners. Except as set forth in an amendment, the MOU will be
unaffected and shall continue in full force and effect in accordance with its terms. If there is conflict
between an amendment and the MOU or any earlier amendment, the terms of the most recent
amendment will prevail.
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If there is a conflict between subsequent Interlocal Agreements and the MOU or any earlier
amendments, the terms of the Interlocal Agreements will prevail.
Changes that do not affect the ability to construct the identified Local Nexus Project or achieve the
$130 million local contribution shall be addressed through the Interlocal Agreement between WSDOT
and the relevant Local Agency Partner.
7.2. Dispute Resolution
Should any signatory to this MOU object at any time to any actions proposed or the manner in
which the terms of this MOU are implemented, the Executive Committee shall hear the dispute
first and if the disputant(s) is/are not satisfied with the Committee’s proposed decision, the
Committee will send to the Secretary of Transportation its proposed solution and all
documentation relevant to the dispute. The Secretary of Transportation shall provide the
Executive Committee with his/her advice on how to resolve the dispute within thirty (30)
calendar days of receiving adequate documentation. Prior to reaching a final decision on the
dispute, the Executive Committee shall prepare a written response that considers any timely
advice or comments regarding the dispute from the Secretary of Transportation, signatories
and other interested parties, and provide them with a copy of this written response. WSDOT
will then proceed according to this final decision.
7.3 Conditions for Termination of Participation
Subject to legislative appropriation and all applicable laws, each signatory shall ensure that the
Gateway Program is carried out in accordance with the terms of the MOU and subsequent
Interlocal Agreements. A signatory may terminate its participation in this MOU if its terms
cannot be met and by providing written notice to the Secretary of Transportation and the
Executive Committee a minimum of 180 calendar days before a project issues an RFP that relies
on that local agency partner funding. Prior to providing written notice terminating
participation, however, the signatories shall consult with WSDOT to determine whether an
amendment to the MOU might be feasible. If a signatory terminate its participation, WSDOT
will then consult with the Executive Committee to determine if project scope elements need to
be removed if contributions are not realized in accordance with this understanding.
8. Period of Agreement.
This MOU will commence on (July 1, 2018 proposed date) and will dissolve when the $130
million of local contribution have been secured, or when the Local Nexus Projects have been
constructed and are complete.
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9. Signatories
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Stephen Metruck Date
Executive Director
Port of Seattle
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Dick Marzano Date
Commissioner
Port of Tacoma
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Dow Constantine Date
County Executive
King County
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Bruce Dammeier Date
County Executive
Pierce County
_______________________________________ ________________________________
David E. Hill Date
Mayor
City of Algona
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Nancy Backus Date
Mayor
City of Auburn
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Matt Mahoney Date
Councilmember
City of Des Moines
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_______________________________________ ________________________________
Daryl Eidinger Date
Mayor
City of Edgewood
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Jim Ferrell Date
Mayor
City of Federal Way
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Pat Hulcey Date
Councilmember
City of Fife
__________________________________ ________________________________
Dana Ralph Date
Mayor
City of Kent
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Shanna Styron-Sherrell Date
Mayor
City of Milton
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Leanne Guier Date
Mayor
City of Pacific
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Kevin Yamamoto Date
City Manager
City of Puyallup
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Joseph Scorcio Date
City Manager
City of SeaTac
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_______________________________________ ________________________________
William L. Pugh Date
Mayor
City of Sumner
______________________________________ ________________________________
Victoria Woodards Date
Mayor
City of Tacoma
_______________________________________ ________________________________
Roger Millar Date
Secretary of Transportation
Washington State Department of Transportation