Colville Tribes urge help as 1,200-mile road system outpaces $5.3 million in funding

NORTH CENTRAL WASHINGTON — The Colville Confederated Tribes drew a clear, candid sketch of a road network that spans 1.4 million acres and touches the lives of people throughout North Central Washington — in the Lake Chelan Valley, the Wenatchee Valley, and beyond.

Speaking to the Washington State Transportation Commission, Richard Palmer, Sr., director of the Tribes’ Department of Transportation, said the program is responsible for roughly 1,200 miles of Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and tribal roads on a reservation where winter, distance and supply chains squeeze a construction season into just a few months. Annual federal formula funding — about $5.3 million — can’t keep pace with needs; in the last six years the department has rehabilitated only about 30 miles of the 500 miles that most urgently need full-depth fixes, a pace that “isn’t catching up.”

Palmer’s team detailed how that shortfall plays out on the ground. A chronic washout site on SR-20 inside the reservation has flooded three times in seven years because of an undersized culvert; elsewhere, the aging Inchelium-Gifford ferry and the approach along Fort Route 3 need investment now, not years from now. The Tribes had been told a long-promised legislative paving project at Inchelium would finally go this year, only to learn on July 3 the money was being reallocated, with 2030 now floated as the earliest start. Those delays ripple outward to towns and job sites that connect to US-97, SR-155 and SR-21, corridors that funnel residents, freight and visitors to hubs like Wenatchee and Chelan.

If there’s a counterweight to the funding strain, it’s partnerships. Senior Transportation Planner Deborah LaCombe described a marked shift with WSDOT’s North Central Region: Less paper shuffling, more joint grant writing and technical help. The department has stacked wins and active applications — pedestrian/bike dollars, Connecting Communities funding, a consolidated grant for planning, and new eligibility for the Highway Safety Improvement Program — while also chasing competitive federal programs (including bridge planning for a replacement of the Inchelium crossing). That grant work depends on steady, human-to-human support, LaCombe emphasized, from WSDOT HQ divisions and the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. And because the reservation straddles two WSDOT regions and four Regional Transportation Planning Organizations (RTPOs) — including the Chelan-Douglas Transportation Council — the Tribes are now voting members at those planning tables, which ties their priorities more directly into regional decisions that shape travel to and from Wenatchee and Chelan.

The team that stood alongside Palmer underscored that capacity: Brenda Whalawitsa, the department’s Business Services Supervisor, accompanied LaCombe at the presentation. Their presence signals a DOT that’s trying to turn every lever available: Blending formula funds with safety, active-transportation and bridge dollars; coordinating with counties and cities; and keeping projects moving even when timelines slip. It’s work that matters outside the reservation boundary, too. When Fort Route 3 or SR-155 falter, the shock is felt in Omak and Nespelem — and down the line in places that depend on those connections to the Wenatchee and Chelan economies.

Palmer didn’t sugarcoat the moment. The system is aging, costs are up, and “do more with less” is giving way to “do less with less.” But he framed the “ask” in the same collaborative spirit the commission heard across the region: Keep the state at the table as a partner — and help move near-term projects to construction so rural communities aren’t waiting another five years for the basics.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media