The Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) of Washoe County is receiving $25 million in federal funding for the Lemmon Drive Improvements and Resiliency Project. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is awarding the money as part of the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program.
More than $2.2 billion from the RAISE program is being awarded to 162 different infrastructure projects in the United States. Half of the Fiscal Year 2023 funding will go to rural areas and half will go to urban areas.
RAISE is a very competitive grant program. The U.S. Department of Transportation received $15 billion in requests for the $2.26 billion available. Sponsors of state, county, municipal, and tribal governments and others applied for the funding.
About the Lemmon Drive Improvements and Resiliency Project:
The Lemmon Drive Improvements and Resiliency Project will reconstruct 3.7 miles of Lemmon Drive between Fleetwood Drive and Ramsey Way. The project will realign a portion of the roadway to a natural berm and elevate it above the 100-year flood plain of Swan Lake. The project will revive a separated 10-foot-wide multiuse path that was damaged and closed after previous floods. It will include flood mitigation and stormwater improvements, including the construction of retention and equalization basins.
Converting a portion of existing Lemmon Drive to a frontage road will eliminate dangerous driveway connections and improve public transit access.
The RTC will install a signalized intersection and improve lighting at the southern end of the project area which leads to a community hub that includes an elementary school, churches, a Boys and Girls Club, and a popular park. The project will add 2,000 square feet of sidewalk on Patrician Drive to complete the active transportation network to Lemmon Valley Elementary School.
The total project cost is nearly $42 million. The RTC has already received $4 million in Community Project Funding (earmarks) that will be used for preliminary engineering. The RTC will use local fuel tax funds and other revenue to cover the remaining costs.
The Lemmon Drive Improvements and Resiliency Project is the second phase of the project. Crews completed Phase 1 construction in 2022. Construction of the final phase is anticipated to begin in 2025.