Commissioners hear Loop Road design concern

Wahkiakum County commissioners heard concerns about repair of a slide along Loop Road and handled other items of business in a short meeting Tuesday.

Loop Road resident Robert Torppa voiced concern that the repair of the sliding slope is second rate and will fail.

The Grays River cuts into the base of a hillside and is causing the slide. The county has closed one lane of the road while it developed a plan to stabilize the slope and found funding for the project.

Torppa, a contractor, has a house on the crest of the hill above the slide.

The original stabilization plan for the slope called for a cantilevered concrete wall. The base of the wall would be dug into the slope, and the weight of the hill above would hold it in place.

However, Torppa said he learned that the project contractor, Catworks, had proposed a change in design, once the project was underway, to simply install a wall of concrete blocks.

Torppa said that in his opinion the block wall isn't strong enough and the weight of the earth above and behind it will simply push it away, leading to another slide.

Commission Chair Blair Brady responded that the county's consulting engineer for the project had reviewed the proposed alternative and concluded it would be satisfactory for the work.

Public Works Director Pete Ringen was on vacation and couldn't attend the meeting. Commissioners asked Torppa to discuss the situation with Ringen and return to another commission meeting if he desired.