Title
Resolution Authorizing the City of Wilmington's Application for the U.S. Department of Transportation / Federal Highway Administration's Bridge Investment Program Grant for the Replacement of the 4th Street Bridge and the Pine Grove Drive Bridge to be Matched with Local Funds
Body
LEGISLATIVE INTENT/PURPOSE:
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Transportation ("DOT") / Federal Highway Administration's ("FHWA") Bridge Investment Program ("BIP") is part of a larger suite of discretionary federal funding authorized under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which aims to significantly improve and/or rebuild America's infrastructure across all fifty states and U.S. territories; and,
WHEREAS, the funding programs offered by the DOT and its agencies are historic in terms of the large size of the awards, with the BIP offering up to $100 million per award, with a 20% local match required by the City, which will be covered by available City funds that currently exist in the projects; and,
WHEREAS, applicants for BIP funding will be evaluated by the FHWA in terms of how each proposed project addresses issues such as climate change, resiliency, equity, safety, and accessibility, among other concerns; and,
WHEREAS, BIP grants fund the replacement, rehabilitation, preservation, and protection of bridges that are registered on the FHWA's National Bridge Inventory ("NBI"), and are designated as being in either poor condition, or in fair condition now but will fall into poor condition within three years; and,
WHEREAS, the City of Wilmington has identified the 4th Street Bridge and the Pine Grove Bridge as eligible for BIP funding, as they are both currently rated in fair condition but will fall into poor condition within three years; and,
WHEREAS, the 4th Street Bridge is a three span bridge that was built in 1950 with a design loading rate of 25 tons, and since 2016, the load bearing capacity of the bridge has been steadily restricted and is now at 10 tons, so the bridge...
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