Westside Trail through King City (under the power lines) currently being planned.
** includes building the road connection between Fischer Road and 137th **
Fill out King City’s Survey to give input on the Westside Trail here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Z3N57DX
Yeah! A Park! Trails for bikes and pedestrians! We are all excited about that!
But why is it being tied to making the connection between Fischer Road and 137th?
The Westside Trail as planned by Metro will “establish a regional active transportation link between the Willamette and Tualatin Rivers while enhancing local pedestrian and bicycle connectivity within and between these communities”.
The King City portion extends from the Tualatin River to Beef Bend Road under the Bonneville/PGE power lines. Planning work has begun on this segment.
Getting access to the property: At the March 20, 2024 meeting, the City Council approved a contract with Consor North America to ‘Provide valuation and acquisition services for properties within and around the BPA/PGE corridor between SW Beef Bend Rd and the Tualatin River’. Essentially, to obtain access to the property in order to build this portion of the Westside Trail.
Fischer Road connection to 137th: to be built when the Westside Trail is developed
At the February 8, 2023 public meeting, a question was asked about the timing of roads being built. The answer regarding the Fischer Road extension was in two parts: the extension, and the connection to 137th. Here is the staff’s answer regarding the connection between Fischer and 137th:
137th to Fischer would not punch through for construction traffic, although if the westside trail segment gets developed then it will also get developed.
We ask – why is this necessary? Plan for it yes, but why build it at the same time as the Westside Trail, before there is enough development to need it for neighborhood traffic? Why build it now, before the intersection at 137th and Beef Bend is improved? Building it now increases traffic through Edgewater, putting traffic at the intersection of 137th and Beef Bend where there is no traffic light, and where it is becoming more difficult to get onto Beef Bend road.
Timing of construction of the Westside Trail
According to the King City website, construction is scheduled for late 2025 (pending funding).
Timing of improvement of the intersection at Beef Bend Road and 137th Avenue: The Transportation System Plan has this improvement identified as an “High Unconstrained Tier 1”. This means: “Unconstrained projects are those remaining from the Aspirational list that likely will not receive funding by 2040.”
We say – Do not build the connection between Fischer Road and 137th until two conditions are met:
- King City development requires it to serve neighborhood traffic
- The intersection at 137th and Beef Bend is improved to handle the increased traffic which will result from connecting Fischer to 137th
The Edgewater HOA currently owns the property under the PGE power lines.
- Can the Fischer Road extension be built if the HOA does not sell the property to King City?
- Can Edgewater HOA give an easement to build the Westside trail park, but not a road?
Schedule of Westside Trail development (according to King City website):
- Winter 2023 – Land and topography surveying
- Spring 2024 – Community input on the park features
- Summer 2024 – Development of park plan concept
- Fall 2024 – Community input on park plan concept
- 2024-2025 – Engineering design, permitting, easement acquisitions and agreements, and securing funding.
- Late 2025 – Construction, pending funding.