OLYMPIA -- Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Joe Allbaugh said Wednesday that he will return to Olympia in mid-April to assess recovery from the Feb. 28 Nisqually Earthquake.
Allbaugh, who visited Olympia on March 1, also pledged to press for continued federal help to solve Olympia's quake-related transportation and economic woes.
"I believe it's very important to see what kind of progress has happened since the quake," Allbaugh said. "I'm asking folks to hang in there; it's really tough."
The 6.8 magnitude quake crippled the Fourth Avenue bridge and Deschutes Parkway, leaving only the Fifth Avenue bridge as a two-lane link between downtown and the west side.
About 33,100 vehicles traveled across the Fourth and Fifth Avenue bridges daily before the earthquake.
A traffic count taken on the Fifth Avenue bridge March 7 showed it carrying about 28,930 vehicles per day -- a 12.5 percent decrease in total volume.
A count on March 14 showed the bridge carrying about 29,360 vehicles per day.
The Olympia Downtown Association attributes the road closures to an estimated 60 percent drop in customers at downtown stores.
Allbaugh is working with Department of Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta to expedite the construction of a new Fourth Avenue bridge.
The Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration plays a central role in bridge permit approval.
City officials are asking federal highway officials, the National Marine Fisheries Services, and other federal agencies to agree that the damaged bridge presents immediate threats to life and property.
A declaration of immediate threats would open a loophole in the federal Endangered Species Act and allow for the immediate construction of a temporary two-lane bridge between the existing Fourth and Fifth Avenue bridges.
Allbaugh said he is focusing political pressure solely on Mineta's agency, but Mineta has not promised an early bridge.
"For me, the most important role has been with the Federal Highway Administration," said Allbaugh, who said Mineta is still studying the bridge situation. "He is moving forward with getting those local issues addressed."
Frustrated councilors
Although City Manager Dick Cushing said federal agencies should determine the temporary trestle's fate this week, City Council members vented frustrations Tuesday night.
"The timing is important because with tornado and flood season coming, Olympia could well be forgotten east of the Mississippi," said Mayor Stan Biles.
That won't happen, Allbaugh said Wednesday.
"That is not the way FEMA operates or the way the federal government operates," Allbaugh said. "Olympia will not be put on the back burner."
Temporary bridge funding
Although the Fourth Avenue bridge project will likely receive federal highway reimbursement for costs outside of its estimated $33.7 million bridge corridor construction price tag, federal highway Operations Team Leader Gary Hughes said the administration would cover the early construction costs of a temporary trestle.
"We're barred from authorizing the project for construction," said Hughes, whose team oversees all federally-funded highway projects in Washington. "The funding's there."
The National Marine Fisheries Service must determine whether trestle construction will harm endangered Deschutes River salmon before the Federal Highway Administration can provide money.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also must decide whether construction will harm nearby eagles.
National Marine Fisheries Service officials have been reluctant to make that call until a biological assessment has been completed for the entire project, which is likely to take months.
Hughes said permit agencies have also been reluctant to declare the bridge an emergency under the Endangered Species Act because of potential liabilities.
Mayor Pro Tem Mark Foutch questioned whether high-powered political pressure could be a short cut to liabilities.
"If it were possible to force a declaration of emergency by raw political clout, we might expose ourselves to other circumstances that might delay our bridge further," said Foutch, who met with Allbaugh and members of Washington's Congressional delegation last week.
Funding
Within hours of Allbaugh's March 1 tour of Olympia, President Bush declared six Western Washington counties a major disaster area.
As of Wednesday, that number had jumped to 16.
Under the declaration, residents and businesses within the disaster area are eligible to apply for FEMA and other federal aid.
The assistance, which is coordinated by FEMA, can include grants to help pay for temporary housing, minor home repairs and other disaster-related costs.
Allbaugh said FEMA has received 11,000 applications from Washington individuals and homeowners seeking disaster assistance.
The agency has awarded almost $10 million in assistance through its Disaster Housing Program, with $5 million earmarked for chimney damage.
The average loan for home repairs is about $1,800, Allbaugh said.
Funding allocation is still in its early stages, said Olympia FEMA office spokeswoman Mary Margaret Walker.
Washington officials estimate that about $250 million in damage should be handled through FEMA's Public Assistance Program.
That total does not include a statewide estimate of $93 million damage to federal roads and bridges, for which the Federal Highway Administration is responsible.
"We are still reviewing applications," Walker said. "It's a long-term process."
Walker said the U.S. Small Business Administration's loan award total is also likely to rise.
The SBA is the primary source of funds to repair private property damaged by the earthquake for homeowners, renters, and businesses.
SBA disaster loans of up to $200,000 are available to homeowners for real estate repairs. Up to $40,000 is available for replacement of disaster-damaged private property.
Businesses of all sizes and private and nonprofit organizations may borrow up to $1.5 million to repair or replace business assets.
As of Wednesday, Walker said the SBA approved 124 loan applications, totaling about $2 million.
About $1.5 million is devoted to 112 residential loans; about $500,000 is devoted to business loans.
"The earthquake is not over," Walker said. "With an earthquake, you continue to discover damage."
Michael Burnham covers Olympia for The Olympian. He can be reached at 704-6869.
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