Congressman Garamendi, Sutter County Supervisors, Live Oak Councilmembers Explain How $10 Million TIGER Grant will Transform Live Oak at City Hall Presentation
LIVE OAK, CA – Today, Congressman John Garamendi (D-Fairfield, Davis, Yuba City, CA) joined Sutter County Supervisors, Live Oak City Councilmembers, CalTrans Director Amarjeet Benipal, local city leaders, and dozens of community members announcing the $10 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) competitive grant awarded to the Live Oak Streetscape Project last week. The event, hosted at the Live Oak Council Chambers, went into greater detail on how the funds will be used and demonstrated the broad base of support for this project on the local, state, and federal levels.
“Today we’re proving that when leaders at all level of government can find common purpose, communities can be transformed for the better,” Congressman Garamendi said. “At my Yuba City Open House last year, Vice Mayor Jason Banks approached us about the need for funding this project. We suggested a TIGER grant and helped connect the city government to an expert in the field. The city, with support from the county and state, applied for the grant, and I urged the Department of Transportation to approve the project. Results don’t always come as quickly as we’d like, but when dedicated public servants put in the time and effort, remarkable change is possible. Today we celebrate the fruits of the labors of dozens of public servants representing Live Oak.”
“First of all, I want to extend congratulations to City of Live Oak to be the winner of TIGER Grant. I also want to thank Congressman Garamendi's leadership to champion for this project and Secretary Foxx's approval of this project,” said CalTrans District 3 Director Amarjeet S. Benipal. “This Grant provide down payment to revitalize downtown core for the City of Live Oak through transportation investment by improving connectivity, improved safety, efficient freight movement, improved economy through local redevelopment and improve quality & livability for local community.”
“This is a great deal,” said Sutter County Board of Supervisors Chairman Larry Munger. “Our economic development folks at the Yuba-Sutter Economic Development Corp. were part of the grant writing team with the City of Live Oak, and they said they believe it would not have happened without Congressman Garamendi’s assistance.”
“Christmas came to Live Oak in Early August, thanks to Congressman John Garamendi for delivering a TIGER Grant in the tune of 10 million to the City of Live Oak for improvements of State Route 99 corridors through our town. It's all about safety, more commerce opportunities, and building a safe and successful community,” said Live Oak Mayor Lakhvir Ghag.
"This project will transform highway 99 from a dangerous barrier that divides our community into an attractive business district that will promote investment, job growth, and enhance all of Live Oak,” said Live Oak Vice Mayor Jason Banks.
The Streetscape Project is a State Route 99 highway improvement project across 3.5 miles of highway that closely aligns with TIGER grant criteria. SR-99 Is the main street and commercial corridor of the City of Live Oak, and the Streetscape Project will transform the downtown core by improving traffic flow, goods movement, air quality, and safety on the highway. It includes the addition of two travel lanes with a median, a two-way left turn lane, parallel street parking, highly visible crosswalks, separated pedestrian facilities that meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards, and improved local street connections. The total cost of this phase of the project will cost $17,290,938, with $10 million coming from the TIGER grant, $5 million coming from CalTrans, and the remainder coming from city funds.
Congressman Garamendi was a strong advocate for this application and worked directly with top officials at the Department of Transportation.
In a letter sent to Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx on April 27th, 2016, Congressman Garamendi wrote, “I believe this project matches perfectly with the stated goals of the TIGER program. The City of Live Oak has been on a continuous journey for the past decade of establishing a vision, collaborating, building partnerships, and investing and leveraging resources necessary to see their community move from an underserved, struggling, economically depressed environment into a desirable, economically sufficient regional jewel. The fact that, in the process, SR-99 traffic flow will improve for the entire region makes the Live Oak Streetscape Project all the more critical.”