The Washington County Board of Commissioners have agreed to support a four-lane expansion of Bethany Boulevard between the Sunset Highway and West Union Road.  The 3-2 decision came after a contentious three hour public hearing Tuesday, which drew a capacity crowd to the Shirley Huffman auditorium in Hillsboro.  The most energetic in the audience sported red shirts and buttons in a display of neighborhood solidarity for a smaller “3 Not 5” lane expansion alternative. 

    WEA Executive Director Jonathan Schlueter was the only person called to testify in favor of expanding Bethany Boulevard to five lanes, declaring ”as the economic engine for the state of Oregon, transportation matters here in Washington County.”   

 He pointed to the capacity crowd seated in the audience to illustrate the fast-growing population of Washington County. 

    “The people who are seated on the left side of me represent the number of people who have moved to Washington County in the first half of this week.  The folks who were fortunate enough to find seats on the right side of the room are approximately the number of people who will be moving into Washington County before the end of the week.” 

    Speaking on behalf of WEA’s Transportation Committee and Board of Directors, Schlueter encouraged the five Commissioners to expand Bethany Boulevard as soon as possible.  He said, “Honor our long-standing promise to Washington County voters who have supported and funded county road projects for more than 20 years.  He added, “It is important this project is done well and done right--- but done only once.”  

    Schlueter concluded his three minute testimony by reminding the Commissioners, “Washington County must not invest in congestion.”   He cautioned, “WEA will oppose any proposal to expand Bethany Boulevard to only three lanes as inadequate to the projected needs....an unacceptable risk to public health and safety, and an inappropriate use of public funds.”

    After listening to sharply divided public comments, Commissioner Greg Malinowski made a motion to delay further action on the Bethany Boulevard project for another year, allowing traffic planners and homeowners bordering the public right of way to find a workable compromise.  His motion failed on a 2-3 vote, supported only by Commissioner Dick Schouten.  Malinowski and Schouten also tried to find support for a three lane expansion plan, but were unable to secure a majority vote for that plan either.

    The four lane expansion alternative is expected to get underway early in 2012, at an estimated cost of $9.1 million.  Transportation planners told Commissioners the competitive environment among contract bidders will help keep the project costs low, and the savings will likely be sufficient to help pay for needed interchange improvements to U.S. Highway 26.

WEA's testimony