LA GRANDE — The La Grande Urban Renewal Agency outlined its priorities for the upcoming fiscal year during the annual retreat with city staff on Tuesday, Jan. 28.

The possibility of leveraging urban renewal dollars to assist with the Jefferson Avenue Corridor Redevelopment project and continuing the Adams Avenue streetscape project emerged as areas of interest.

“They are two pretty significant investments, but they do very different things,” La Grande City Manager Robert Strope said. “Part of the question is: can we do both? What does that look like and what’s the timing?”

The evening retreat serves as an opportunity for members of the Urban Renewal Agency to collaborate on ideas with city staff. The budget is among the topics of discussion during the retreat, but no official decisions or votes are conducted.

Strope told members of the agency there has been some confusion from the community regarding the Jefferson Avenue project and whether it takes priority over the Adams Avenue streetscape project.

“I think it’s important for the agency to kind of have an understanding of the differences between those,” Strope said.

The projects

Strope told the agency the two projects are “very different critters.”

La Grande has completed a number of improvement projects along Adams Avenue.

The “Big H” project, which was completed in 2012, rebuilt sidewalks, alleys and alley approaches on Elm and Depot streets between Washington and Jefferson avenues. The project also included a section of Adams Avenue between Elm and Depot streets, the north side of Washington between Elm and Depot streets, and the two alleyways that run between Elm and Depot.

The streetscape project would continue with improvements for curbs, gutters, sidewalks and lights along Adams Avenues where the “Big H” project left off at Elm Street through Greenwood Street.

“It’s a very discrete piece,” Strope said. “The Jefferson Avenue redevelopment is more of a multifaceted economic development effort that we’re trying to get going.”

The idea for the Jefferson Avenue Corridor Redevelopment project evolved out of an initiative in 2022 where Baker Technical Institute received a grant through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to work with students attending the institute and Eastern Oregon University to identify, assess and remediate brownfield sites in both communities.

The city identified a number of potential projects in La Grande with help from Stantec — the lead consultant through the EPA grant. Many of the properties ended up being along Jefferson Avenue.

Economic Development Director Timothy Bishop explained that during this process the city learned that many of the properties were owned generationally and that some of the property owners were starting to think about their exit strategy.

In 2023 the city began exploring the possibility of redeveloping Jefferson Avenue to create a more active corridor.

“It’s more about the things we want to do to enhance growth of business in the footprint,” Strope said.

The grant that was funding the initial brownfield project could also be used for corridor redevelopment planning. So, last year La Grande was able to allocate roughly $40,000 from the funding in order to engage Stantec’s team and create a conceptual plan for Jefferson Avenue.

Agency members weigh in

Agency members Denise Wheeler and Mary Ann Miesner were in favor of moving forward with the Adams Avenue project.

Miesner, who also serves on the board of La Grande Mainstreet Downtown, has been a strong proponent of finishing the Adams Avenue streetscape and has spoken in support of the project at past retreats. She believes it will help create a cohesive feeling for the downtown area.

“It is not cohesive right now,” Miesner said. “You can see the difference between the two.”

Wheeler pointed to the fact that Adams Avenue sees more traffic than Jefferson Avenue. While she understands the issues with Jefferson, she believes the streetscape needs to be completed first.

“My feeling is once you start something you need to finish it,” Wheeler said. “I think we need to finish Adams.”

Mayor Justin Rock said that it all comes down to funding. Agency member David Glabe added it would be helpful to have rough estimates on costs — how much would a block of the streetscape project cost versus some of the options on Jefferson Avenue.

The agency decided that it would be best to hold a work session to discuss the two capital projects in more detail.