Road work
There’s nothing quite like the smell of new asphalt on a bright summer day.
As the weather warms and summer approaches, crews in Spokane Valley are already hard at work upgrading the streets in several areas and preparing for sewer projects in six Valley neighborhoods.
“This year there seems to be quite a bit more projects because some of the projects from last year got carried into this year,” said Steve Worley, Spokane Valley senior engineer.
Inside the city limits, some of the biggest work this summer will take place on Broadway Avenue, Argonne Road, Barker Road and East Appleway .
The surface of Broadway between Bates Road and Sullivan Road will be ground down two inches and replaced. While the road is under construction, traffic sensors in the roadway will be replaced and sidewalk ramps will be brought up to standards outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The same things will be done on Argonne between Indiana and Montgomery Avenues.
The City Council recently raised the possibility of restriping Broadway to include a turn lane, which could cut down on accidents but likely reduce the number of travel lanes. Because of a visceral public reaction when Spokane County proposed the same thing, council members said they would hold at least one public hearing on the topic before considering it further.
On Barker, work already has begun to widen the road to accommodate a turn lane, bike lanes and sidewalks on each side. A traffic signal also will be installed at Barker and Mission. The road from Mission Avenue to Riverway is currently closed to through traffic.
Appleway in Greenacres also will be widened. The crumbling street between Tschirley and Hodges will be replaced with a five-lane road. It will match the new section Spokane County built between Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake, with the exception of sidewalks that will be set back farther from the street.
Crews have already completed a project at Dishman-Mica Road between First and Sprague avenues where the pavement was replaced with concrete. Sidewalk ramps were updated there, also.
On the residential streets, the most disruptive work will be in areas where sewer is going in as part of the ongoing Septic Tank Elimination Program.
The good news for homeowners is that the city will pay to replace the entire roadway once the Spokane Valley projects area done.
In recent months the City Council voted for the second year in a row to pay for full-width paving after sewer projects, which together will cost about $1 million.
After voters rejected a property tax increase to fund the paving in 2004 the council last year indicated streets in the Sherwood Forest neighborhood would be patched after sewer installation rather than replaced. An outcry from residents there prompted council members to change their minds, but they have made clear that the decision on whether to fully repave after sewer projects will be determined each year based on the funds available in the city budget.
This summer’s sewer projects will keep Vera Water and Power busy installing and upgrading equipment while the roads are already torn out, said director of operations Steve Skipworth. Consequently, the utility doesn’t have plans for any other major projects in the roadway this summer.
Representatives from Avista Corp. and Modern Electric also said they don’t have any projects planned that would significantly disrupt traffic in the Valley.
The town of Millwood doesn’t foresee any big projects this summer, either.
“We don’t have anything planned right now,” said Town Clerk Eva Colomb.