The City Council on Monday unanimously approved funding to pay the required administrative costs to apply for a $100 million federal loan.
The Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan would help pay for construction of five key mobility projects to support projected future growth in the BelRed area, as well as in the Wilburton and downtown areas.
The projects in BelRed include two sections of Northeast Spring Boulevard; a new east-west street; the expansion of two sections of 124th Avenue Northeast; and improvements on 130th Avenue Northeast from BelRed Road to Northup Way. Bellevue submitted a letter of interest for the TIFIA loan in August. Transportation Department officials hope to close on the loan in January.
Under terms of the loan, Bellevue would pay for 66 percent of the project’s cost and TIFIA would fund the rest. Bellevue’s matching share of the funding already is included in recent or current Capital Investment Program budgets.
The total cost associated with the application process is expected to be $550,000 to $800,000, depending on the final TIFIA fees. The council-approved funding comes from a transfer of money from an existing capital project that will not be part of the TIFIA loan, as originally anticipated.
