Story by Rodger Nichols for Gorge Country Media
Every once in a while, you come across surprising piece of new information that can change your perspective. Klickitat County Administrator Robb Van Cleave shared one of them at the county commissioner meeting yesterday:
“The meeting yesterday was basically an inventory of assets for the airport; talked about all the different zoning. One point came out that I found interesting is our airport has as much acreage as SeaTac. Which is extremely unusual anymore for an airport to have that much total land. Our footprint is as big as SeaTac’s. So that just talks to the opportunity and the potential for all kinds of economic development to come out of the airport project.
And Public Works Director Jeff Hunter wanted to clear up a few things. Before the Bluebird Solar project gets going, he said, there would be some paving done on the approaches to Wood Creek Bridge on Schrantz Road.
“Part of their haul route is to pave both sides from the bridge out. There’s gonna be a lot of traffic, and that’s a gravel road. It won’t withstand that; it’ll be wash boardy, you’d have to grade the thing almost every day, so they’re gonna pave it all the way out of the draw up to the top, both sides. And before somebody gets confused, the county taxpayers are not paying any of that.”
Speaking of bridges, he added this, with a little help from the engineer:
“There are two bridges on Schrantz Road. Lot of people think we’re talking about the same bridge: we’re not. There’s the bridge over Wood Gulch, which Avengrid is paying to repair. And then there’s the wood bridge, which is on for later on to be replaced / And that’s over Big Horn Creek on Schrantz Road / Yes / That’s a little short span wood structure.”
Commissioners also agreed to have a public meeting on March 3rd to consider extending the moratorium on new Battery Energy Storage Systems in the county, with the time to be announced later.