Travelers on I-5 near milepost 298 will soon see the Oregon Department of Transportation constructing an access road and temporary travel lanes in order to reconstruct the Iowa Viaduct. This $40 million, three year project will include removal of a large number of trees along the hillside, primarily regrowth of cottonwood, alder, maple, and douglas-fir.
Although Urban Forestry has no jurisdiction on ODOT land, good relationship building resulted in ODOT requesting assistance from Urban Forestry. UF’s transportation specialist, Arborist Joe Hintz, inspected the site and gave recommendations to minimize impacts on leave trees and identifi ed significant trees for retention. Although the primary project is to replace the failing 50 year old bridge structure, work also includes trail enhancement, storm water control, and mitigation plantings.
For more information on the project, visit:
