Downtown project receives additional .09 funds

COLFAX — The Whitman County Commissioners allocated $100,000 from the county’s .09 Economic Development Fund to help pay for the shortfall for Pullman’s Downtown Reconstruction project.

During the Monday, Dec. 16, workshop, County Commissioners discussed Pullman Mayor Francis Benjamin’s request from last week’s meeting for the county to help pay some of the extra cost totaling approximately $400,000.

Commissioners added the request to their agenda, discussing concerns of fully paying the project’s shortfall since several other projects in Whitman County were expected to be made in the future.

Swannack said there had been discussion about what funds are available.

“The budget of 2.4 million includes all the revenue for 2025 to get to that number,” Swannack said, noting there is some money available, but the biggest question is what other demands there are to look at.

“I know St. John was trying to figure out how to get funds to go to their sewer plant out passed the Slough out there,” said Swannack, adding he would guess that project to need almost $2 million.

The money joins an additional $200,000 allocated from the tax fund.

Benjamin stated during the Monday, Dec. 9, Commissioner’s Workshop the project’s current projected cost as of Tuesday, Dec. 3, was at $12.3 million, a current funding source of $11.9 million, and a funding gap of $336,000 for 2025.

The Pullman City Council voted without discussion to pay project manager Welch Comer another $200,000 for cost overruns during its meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 3.

According to past reports, Welch Comer has attributed the additional costs to public outreach efforts, such as producing social media videos, which were not included in the original contract.

The firm also redesigned the Pine Street Plaza after the city council scrapped plans for a controversial Downtown Walk of Fame monument. They cited excessively contaminated soil under Main Street as another factor in the cost overruns.

Additionally, Welch Comer said they dealt with recurring issues involving substandard concrete that failed to meet specifications for several weeks.

Welch Comer was hired by the city to oversee the project, originally signing a contract valued just over $1 million for the year’s work.

The firm claimed the extra funding is necessary for tasks outside the original agreement

The City of Pullman is using $9 million in federal COVID relief money to pay for a majority of the project.

According to past reports, the rebuild has faced consistent budget overruns, forcing major plan portions to be cut.

The construction contract with Apollo Inc. was also higher than anticipated and the council previously approved Apollo’s request for additional funds when the project began falling behind schedule.

Initially, Main Street was expected to reopen to traffic in mid-October, but delays pushed that date to mid-November.

The project is now expected to be completed early next year.

Past reports by Olivia Harnack cited.