South 35th Avenue Corridor Extension Project

We are planning to build a new road from South 10th Way to Pioneer Street, which will replace Bertsinger Road so we can accommodate more people walking, biking, and driving in Ridgefield.

Beginning in 2025, we are conducting an environmental review of two alternatives, the Red and Green alternatives, to assist in the selection of a locally preferred alternative. The locally preferred alternative will then move forward with National Environmental Policy Act review, permits, and construction. Throughout the process, you’ll have opportunities to review and comment on the designs and environmental findings at community meetings. See the preliminary timeline below and bookmark this page for future project updates!

Project Timeline

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The planning for this roadway extension began nearly 20 years ago because we wanted to plan ahead for the Gee Creek Plateau subarea. In 2017, we worked with the community to prepare the Gee Creek Plateau Subarea Plan that established the vision and future zoning for this area. The subarea plan identified the 35^th Avenue extension as a necessary roadway to support future growth in the area.

In early 2023, we began an alternatives analysis to identify different alignments for the roadway. The alternatives analysis included three neighborhood meetings, one-on-one stakeholder interviews, and two public open houses to obtain community feedback. Based on the input and suggestions heard at those meetings, we developed several alignment options for the community to review using the following objectives that also came from community feedback:

• Minimize impacts to existing properties, communities, natural features, wetlands, oak habitat and fish-bearing streams.
• Preserve our historic structures and determine additional areas of historic significance.
• Create a new connection that:
  1. Follows property lines where possible to avoid splitting properties.
  2. Maximizes connectivity for bicycles, cars, and pedestrians, and connects to existing roads and sidewalks.

In 2024, the City Council selected the Red and Green alternatives to move into an environmental review process based on your public comments and our initial assessment of potential impacts and benefits of each alternative.

What is involved in environmental review?

Environmental review for this project will happen in two phases:

• Phase 1: Preliminary Environmental Review. We will conduct a preliminary environmental review of the Red and Green alternatives, which includes assessing potential impacts to traffic, environmental resources such as floodplains and wetlands, and estimating cost at a high-level. The findings from this phase will assist the City Council with selection of a preferred design, also known as the locally preferred alternative.
• Phase 2: National Environmental Policy Act Review. The City is anticipating the need for federal funding to build this project, which will mean the project is subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The NEPA process will be led by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in conjunction with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). Together, they will review the locally preferred alternative and determine the level of NEPA review required, which could be an Environmental Assessment or an Environmental Impact Statement. Once the level of review is determined, the City will complete environmental analysis of the locally preferred alternative.

When will I have an opportunity to comment?

You will have an opportunity to review and comment on our preliminary assessment of the Red and Green alternatives in late 2025. We’ll then hold more community meetings where you can comment on the locally preferred alternative in early 2027 and the draft environmental document in late 2028 before we move into final design, permitting, property acquisition, and construction. A construction start date will be identified as the project advances.