The city of Bend proposes building a southern bridge across the Deschutes River below Mount Bachelor Village and near Woodriver Village. The road leading to the bridge from the east will have either a northern alignment closer to the river or a southern alignment set farther back from the river.

-The Project The transportation elements include the bridge, the extension of Reed Market Road from the east and Mount Washington Drive from the west, and three roundabouts one east of the river near the bridge, one at Alderwood Road for access to Woodriver Village and one at the intersection of Reed Market Road and Bond Street.

-The Log Deck Park The Bend Metro Park and Recreation District plans to build a park on the former log deck between the planned road and the river. If the northern road is built, the park will be 17 acres. With the southern alignment, the park would be 19 acres.

-Costs The estimated cost for the entire project is $7.1 million with the northern alignment and $8.2 million with the southern alignment. The West Bend Traffic Consortium will contribute $2.8 million toward the bridge and is eligible for reimbursement of up to $2.3 million from the city through system development charges (SDCs), the fees developers pay the city to offset the impact of their projects on public infrastructure. The Bulletin is a member of the consortium and is responsible for paying $90,000 toward the bridge. The rest of the funding would come from the city’s SDC fund. A total of $6.7 million is now budgeted for the project. The city would likely delay another transportation project in order to cover the remaining bridge project costs.

-The Referendum Voters will have a chance to answer three yes-or-no questions: whether the city should build the bridge, the northern alignment and the southern alignment. The Bend City Council will make the final decision on the project. Ballots will be mailed Aug. 31. Election day the deadline for submitting ballots is Sept. 18.