Newberg's aging roads are increasingly expensive to maintain and state tax revenues are declining. The City is exploring ways to ensure reliable funding for pavement maintenance into the future.

The purpose of this online open house is to explain the City of Newberg’s current maintenance funding challenge, gather feedback on a proposed pavement management approach for maintaining roads into the future, and gather feedback on potential revenue sources to help fund future road maintenance.

The survey portion of this website will be available until October 16, 2016.

Stations

Go directly to a station using the buttons below, or at the top of the screen to move through the stations in order.

1
Pavement condition is getting worse over time, and available revenues are declining. 
2
The City needs a proactive Pavement Maintenance Plan that describes which roads need repairs provides consistent funding. 
3
Learn about current and potential funding sources: a Transportation Utility Fee and/or a Local Gas Tax. 
4
Learn about the next steps in this process and answer a few final questions. 

= Page includes questions or opportunities for comment.

Our Maintenance Challenge

Citizens have repeatedly cited maintenance of roads as a significant issue of concern in Satisfaction Surveys taken in 2000 and 2013. In 2013, 95% of survey responses (541 out of 565) said funding street repairs is of medium to high importance. Only emergency services and drinking water were seen as higher in importance.

City Pavement Assets

Current Pavement Condition

System wide, the city averages a Pavement Condition Index (PCI) of 68 today.

Average pavement condition is generally “good” but slipping toward “fair” as more roads age and funding does not allow for regular maintenance of our roadway system.

If we continue to spend approximately $300,000/year, by 2026 the estimated city wide average PCI will be 52.4.


Questions

Do you feel road pavement maintenance is an issue of concern in Newberg? (Check one.)
On average, how would you describe the condition of the Newberg roads that you use frequently? (Check one.)

Proposed Approach

The City Needs a Proactive Pavement Maintenance Plan.A maintenance plan would describe which roads need repairs and would provide consistent funding to take care of roadway assets.This means not waiting until our roads fall into conditions that drive community complaints.

Deferred Maintenance Now Means Higher Costs Later

Our current limited funding means we are only able to react to emergencies (potholes that can damage vehicles) and citizen complaints. This is not a cost effective way to address maintenance.

Ideally, the City should be able to plan and schedule maintenance and repairs to the road network to optimize pavement conditions before they become serious problems. This would include:

  • Maintaining an inventory of current pavement conditions
  • Assigning priorities to road segments
  • Network analysis based on decision criteria
  • Scheduling advance maintenance to maintain “good” streets
  • Scheduling repairs of “poor” and “fair” streets

Maintaining the road network is like maintaining a home. Just as deferring relatively inexpensive household maintenance such as painting or sealing can lead to costly problems in the future, neglecting necessary roadway maintenance today can lead to significant future costs for city residents.

How could we raise up to $2.3 million annually for road maintenance?

  • If we increase spending to $2.3 million/year, by 2026 the estimated city wide average PCI will be 78.1
  • If we increase spending to $2.9 million/year, by 2026 the estimated city wide average PCI will be 81.4

The City estimates that it will need close to $2.3 million per year to maintain pavement conditions at current (2016) levels and is exploring ways to generate additional revenue. As statewide gas-tax revenues decline, many cities in Oregon are facing similar funding challenges and are turning to Transportation Utility Fees and Local Gas Taxes as alternatives.

Funding Options

Learn about the funding options below and tell us what you think should be considered as the city explores these possible new revenue sources.


Current Funding

Newberg receives about $1.3 Million/year from the State Gas Tax … but only about $520,000 currently benefits pavement. The remaining funding is used for items such as street widening projects, street lighting, street signs, street sweeping, and sidewalk projects. The funding available for basic preventative maintenance and repair to streets has not changed much over time. Meanwhile, our roads have been deteriorating, and additional revenue is needed if the City wants to do more.

Transportation Utility Fees

Transportation Utility Fees are dedicated funding sources and cannot be spent for other purposes outside the original intent.

Transportation Utility Fees can be based on:

  • Flat Fees where everybody pays the same. A single family home pays the same as a Fred Meyer or Climax.
  • Variable Fees where different types of users pay differently based on assumptions about their use.
  • Trip Generation where fees are directly linked to road use.

Fees can also be varied by business size or class. For example, a small florist would pay less than a major retailer.

Spectrum of Transportation Utility Fees

Example Transportation Utility Fees by Class

Proposal: Variable Fee Within Class

Other similarly sized cities are finding this utility fee model easy to use. It is more equitable for different types of users because it assesses fees based on multiple factors:

  • Type of business (class)
  • Size of business
  • Square footage
  • Single family vs. multi-family residences

This type of fee also considers the ease of collecting funds, usually using existing municipal bills to minimize administrative expense.

Example Fees by Class

Example: Residents may pay $6-$10/month, while larger trip generators pay more. Example fees and breakdown of classes are for discussion and comparison only.


Questions

What are your thoughts on implementing a Transportation Utility Fee in Newberg? (Check one.)

Local Gas Tax

City Council is interested in exploring a local gas tax, which could go on the ballot as early as spring 2017.

  • Over 13 million gallons of gas were purchased in Newberg last year.
  • A $0.06 tax per gallon would raise between $700-$800,000 per year.

Other cities and counties are using Local Gas Taxes:

(Scroll to view.)

CITY OF WOODBURN

$.01 per gallon

CITY OF EUGENE

$.05 per gallon

CITY OF SPRINGFIELD

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF VENETA

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF DUNDEE

$.02 per gallon

CITY OF TIGARD

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF MILWAUKIE

$.02 per gallon

CITY OF COQUILLE

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF COBURG

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF ASTORIA

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF WARRENTON

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF CANBY

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF NEWPORT (NOVEMBER 1ST – MAY 31ST)

$.01 per gallon

CITY OF NEWPORT (JUNE 1ST – OCTOBER 31ST)

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF HOOD RIVER

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF TILLAMOOK

$.015 per gallon

CITY OF THE DALLES

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF STANFIELD

$.01 per gallon

CITY OF SANDY

$.01 per gallon

CITY OF OAKRIDGE

$.03 per gallon

CITY OF TROUTDALE

$.01 per gallon

CITY OF PORTLAND (Expires in 2020)

$.10 per gallon

CITY OF REEDSPORT (MAY – OCTOBER)

$.03 per gallon

MULTNOMAH COUNTY

$.03 per gallon

WASHINGTON COUNTY

$.01 per gallon


Questions

What are your thoughts on implementing a Local Gas Tax in Newberg? (Check one.)

Tell us what you think

What should the city consider as we explore these possible new revenue sources?

    Some of what we’ve heard so far:

    • “Equity and fairness are important; everyone who uses the roads should pay their ‘fair’ share”
    • “Trucks should pay more”
    • “Everyone should see benefits”
    • “Consider temporary funding”
    • “Hold the city accountable for delivering results: better roads”

    Questions

    We have begun examining revenue needs to maintain our existing pavement. Some have expressed an interest in funding additional transportation infrastructure.

    What types of maintenance and improvements do you think any new revenue (transportation utility fees or a local gas tax) should be allowed to fund in the public right-of-way? (Check all that apply.)
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    Schedule and Next Steps

    In the coming months, we’ll be reaching out to residents, businesses, community groups, and others to hear what locals think about new revenue sources. An ad-hoc committee of businesses, residents, non-profits, and other community organizations is helping the City consider all available information and is weighing in on the discussion.

    Schedule

    There is still more information to examine about funding options

    Late this fall, staff and consultants will draft a plan for pavement management and funding. City council will review the plan and take action. A new street utility fee and local gas tax could be approved and go into effect later in 2017.

    Final Questions

    Do you live, work, or own property or a business in Newberg? (Check all that apply.)
    Did you attend the September 28 project open house in Newberg? (Check one.)
    How useful was the information presented on this website? (Check one.)

    Mailing List (Optional)

    Provide the following optional contact information if you would like to receive email updates about the Pavement Maintenance and Funding Master Plan.

    Demographic Information (Optional)

    These next questions will help us know if we are hearing from a representative cross-section of the public.

    What is your age? (Check one.)
    When asked to identify your racial or ethnic identity, how do you identify? (Check all that apply.)
    How do you identify your gender? (Check one.)
    Which of the following best represents the annual income of your household before taxes? (Check one.)
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