ICYMI: Washington To Get Nearly $133 Million in Infrastructure Investments Through RAISE Grant Program Created by Murray—Most Awarded to WA State in History –MORE HERE
***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL OF THE EVENT HERE***
Port Angeles, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, visited the Olympic Discovery Trail in Port Angeles with local officials and advocates to discuss $16 million in federal funding she secured to work toward completion of the Olympic Discovery Trail and the Sound to Olympics Trail, which will together eventually connect La Push to the Bainbridge Island Ferry Terminal. The funding comes from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant program, which Senator Murray created in 2009. Senator Murray was joined at today’s event by City of Port Angeles officials and representatives from the Puget Sound to Pacific Collaborative, North Kitsap Trails Association, Peninsula Trails Coalition, and Ian’s Ride.
“The Olympic Discovery Trail is a beautiful trail that so many people already enjoy in a multitude of ways—so I’m thrilled that I was able to secure federal funding to help build it out even further. Once this trail is completed, it’s going to run all the way from Port Townsend to the Pacific Ocean at La Push, and beyond being another way to take in the Olympic Peninsula, it’ll be a real economic driver for communities like Port Angeles,” said Senator Murray. “I created the RAISE grant program back in 2009 because I knew what a big difference it makes when the federal government is able to invest in local infrastructure projects that are so important to our communities. I’m so glad that the $16 million I secured for trail planning in the most recent RAISE grant cycle will help move this project forward, and of course I was thrilled to see that Washington state also received the most RAISE funding of any state in the country.”
The Olympic Discovery Trail began in 1991 when the first trestle and bridge—the 3000-foot section of rail corridor that spans the Dungeness River west of Sequim—was saved through a variety of state and federal grants. When completed, the Olympic Discovery Trail will run continuously from Port Townsend to the Pacific Ocean at La Push—providing safe, multi-use passage for bikes and walkers—and connect to the Sound to Olympics Trail at Discovery Bay in North-Central Jefferson County. The Sound to Olympics Trail, when completed, will run from Discovery Bay to the ferry terminal on Bainbridge Island and will mirror the shared use and safety-focused vision of the Olympic Discovery Trail. The two trails together, when fully completed, will mean 130+ miles of trail fully connecting the Bainbridge Island Ferry Terminal to the Pacific Ocean at La Push.
Earlier this summer, Senator Murray announced nearly $133 million in grant funding for Washington state under the RAISE program Murray first established back in 2009—the most the state has ever been awarded through the program in a single grant cycle. RAISE grants—which were originally created under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as TIGER grants—can be used for a wide variety of infrastructure projects with local or regional impact. Washington state was awarded the most grants of any state and received the most in total funding in Fiscal Year 2023. Senator Murray notably helped secure $7.5 billion for the RAISE program in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in addition to annual funding for the program that Congress provides through the regular appropriations process. The program is funded via the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee Murray leads. The draft funding bill recently approved by the Committee includes $800 million for the RAISE program.
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