By Mary Owen 
A sprinkling of rain failed to dampen the enthusiasm of area residents and officials who turned out May 19 to view the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Stayton/Sublimity Interchange Project.
Marion County Commissioner and longtime Sublimity resident Sam Brentano views the highway improvement as a win-win for the area.
“The new interchange will bring about a freer flow of traffic and goods,” Brentano said. “Rumors are that Sublimity could be looking to get more commercial development – and hopefully more jobs – from this.”
Construction by K&E Excavating began on the highway modernization project at Highway 22 and the Cascade Highway in June 2008, and is expected by be completed on time an on budget, according to the ODOT. The project is slated to be finished this summer.
“ODOT has done an outstanding job in keeping things moving and responding to questions and suggestions throughout the construction phase,” said Mayor Gerry Aboud, one of three key people to campaign for ODOT to authorize and fund the project.
Originally, the Sublimity/Stayton interchange was to be funded in the mid-1990s along with interchanges at Golf Club Road and at Aumsville and the widening of Highway 22 from Joseph Street to just east of Stayton, Aboud said.
“But it was taken out of the project because of lack of funding,” he said.
• New modern eastbound and westbound
ramps onto Highway 22,
eliminating stops and allowing traffic to
accelerate to highway speed.
• A four-bridge over crossing at
Cascade Highway and Mill Creek.
• Realignment of Cascade Highway
to the east to two lanes with a turn lane.
• Installation of a traffic signal on
Cascade Highway at the eastbound exit
and entrance ramps.
• Extension of a four-lane section of
Highway 22 eastward for 1.7 miles to
just east of Mill Creek and westbound travel lanes.
• Addition of a 650-foot retaining wall
along new westbound travel lanes.
• Installation of a modern lighting
system in the interchange.
• New landscaping, including 200 trees,
500 shrubs and 1,400 plants.
Former state Rep. Jeff Kropf for District 17 played a critical role in getting ODOT to once again look favorably on the project. Stayton’s former Public Works director Mike Faught then joined Aboud in making the rounds to pitch the project. Over a six-year period, the men attended numerous Mid-Willamette Area Commission on Transportation, ODOT, the Oregon Transportation Commission and other transportation meetings around the state.
“We were literally everywhere and everyone knew who we were,” Aboud said. “This is what it took to get to the top of MWACT’s list.”
After being rated number one out of 16 reviewed by MWACT, the project was approved by the other five Region II transportation commissions.
“All the ACTs in Region II meet to hash out and prioritize the projects in the entire region,” Aboud explained.
“There is never enough money to even do the top projects in each ACT. Consequently most projects are dropped and some approved with less funding, which in essence requires the project to be scaled back. I believe the budget for all of Region II was $44 million dollars that cycle. There was no way we were going to get better than a third of that budget for our project.”
The regional commission awarded $7.5 million of the $18.8-million project, Aboud said.
“Mike and I then spent the last year lobbying for the remainder of the money and received it,” Aboud said.
“After Region II approved the project, ODOT staff pushed and pushed for more money from different sources and funds.”
The ribbon cutting, Aboud said, recognized “not only the completion of the long-awaited project and this involved in the construction, but the contribution of those involved in getting the project approved.”
Aboud called the ceremony “the end of a hard-fought campaign.”
Brentano credited Aboud and Faught for the project’s success.
“Without their efforts, I know it would never have happened,” Brentano said.
“We should all be aware of the sacrifices local businesses made in order to build a better, safer interchange for all of us to use,” Aboud said. “I certainly recognize the hardships put on businesses that were adversely affected by the two-year construction phase. And the driving public has been wonderful in their response to delays and inconvenience.”
Brentano credited Sherrie Sprenger, the current District 17 state representative, for “picking up the ball” and keeping access available during all phases of construction.
Aboud also credited ODOT for “putting their best design team on the project.
“They worked to build a beautiful structural facility, enhanced by wonderful landscaping,” he said.
“We are all happy to see this project coming to completion,” Aboud said.
