FERNDALE — A new four-lane freeway overpass at Main Street, traffic signals and roundabouts are recommended by an environmental study of the proposed Pioneer Plaza development.

The draft environmental impact statement, released by the city Monday, calls for major transportation upgrades as part of the mixeduse development, which includes about 160 condominiums, 775,000 square feet of retail space, 234,000 square feet of office space and several four-story parking garages.

The project would be on nearly 100 acres south of Main Street and east of Interstate 5. It still has to clear environmental and land-use hurdles and be approved by the City Council. The statement doesn’t specify the share the government and developer would pay for, and it’s not a final decision on which upgrades would be made. The study reviewed the project’s effects on everything from the natural environment to the fiscal impact on the city.

“It’s a pleasure now to actually be getting close to be getting done, and particularly a pleasure to put aside all of the misinformation that was put out about the project early on,” said Michael Kohl of Bas Construction and Development Services. Kohl works for landowners Pioneer Plaza Partners.

A representative of Ferndale Citizens for Wise Growth — a group that opposes the project, citing increased taxes, traffic, crime and a negative impact on local business — couldn’t be reached for reaction Tuesday.

According to the environmental statement, the development would:

Provide city government a net income of nearly $33 million over the next decade.

Generate more than 29,000 vehicle trips total per day. By comparison, Main Street at First Avenue had more than 20,000 vehicle trips per day, according to a 2003 city count.

Include more than 4,500 parking spots (a minimum of 3,234 are required by city law).

Increase the average wait time at the Main Street- Interstate 5 northbound ramps, for example, from the current 27 seconds to nearly a minute. But by building a four-lane overpass and installing roundabouts at the northbound and southbound freeway ramps, that wait time would be decreased to 13 seconds.

The statement sets up two alternatives to the proposal: decrease the amount of development by about 10 percent or not do the project at all.

The statement rejected several alternatives, including a purely retail center selling bulky merchandise such as appliances and furniture, an auto sales facility and a considerably smaller version of the current proposal.

Kohl said the project would capture sales tax revenue that residents are now taking to Bellingham and outside Whatcom County.

Pioneer Plaza Partners will pay about $200,000 to prepare the final statement, Kohl said, although the consultants work for the city. To date, the property owners have spent more than $1 million on the $280-million-to- $300-million project, he said.