Transportation and Infrastructure
U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici stopped by Astoria on Monday to present a check that will assist in funding a city project to prevent landslides.
"This was a project that was worthy of advocacy because it really is about saving lives," the Oregon Democrat said. "The hospital and the homes that are in this area could be severely damaged if (or) when a landslide happens and to be able to partner with the community here and get the funding to help prevent a landslide will be good for the hospital, good for the community and likely save lives."
Speaking at a hangar near Portland International Airport Thursday afternoon, President Joe Biden highlighted several ongoing and planned upgrades to the airport as examples of the kind of national infrastructure renewal that will be delivered through the $1 trillion infrastructure bill that he signed last fall. Mayor Ted Wheeler, Brown, Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden and Reps. Suzanne Bonamici, Kurt Schrader, Peter DeFazio and Earl Blumenauer each gave brief introductory speeches touting infrastructure developments in Oregon.
U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh toured the NECA/IBEW Local 48 training center in Portland March 24 and heard about efforts to bring more women into the building trades. That's a familiar cause for Walsh, who as head of the Boston Building Trades unions created a program that brings women and minorities into the building trades. At the training center, Walsh was joined by Governor Kate Brown and U.S. Representatives Suzanne Bonamici and Earl Blumenauer.
Oregon U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-District 1, says the state is leading the way in the shift toward clean energy. Bonamici, who works on the Select Committee for Climate Crisis, says she's working to get federal funding to boost manufacturing.
The state's largest provider of mass-transit is working to combat climate change. Officials with TriMet met with Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici to discuss its transition to a zero-emission bus fleet. Currently, TriMet is testing a number of electric buses. They plan on making the transition to a zero-emission bus fleet by 2040.
Steep slopes and poor soil make the north side of Astoria particularly vulnerable to sliding. Last year, a landslide uprooted an entire house and left it sitting on the sidewalk. But the city recently landed more than $600,000 in federal aid to upgrade drainage systems at landslide-prone sites. The money is part of a larger omnibus spending package that will fund projects throughout Northwest Oregon. U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, an Oregon Democrat, had advocated for the inclusion of the projects.