Spokane Valley plans variety of roadwork projects

The city of Spokane Valley has more than a dozen projects slated to start this year, including major road improvements, sidewalk installations and improvements to CenterPlace Regional Event Center.

The most expensive project scheduled to start the summer are improvements to Barker Road from the Spokane River to Euclid Avenue, which will cost about $4.5 million, but the city is also planning much smaller projects elsewhere to improve traffic flow by adding signage and signaling.

Road construction projects

Sullivan Road Railroad Bridge:

This fall Spokane Valley will resurface the Sullivan Road Bridge, which spans the Union Pacific Railroad tracks near the Euclid Avenue and Sullivan Road intersection. The $338,000 project planned for later this year will repair the four-lane bridge, which has two lanes going in each direction.

Indiana Avenue from Evergreen Road to Sullivan Road:

Indiana Avenue will be resurfaced from Evergreen Road to Sullivan Road in front of the Spokane Valley Mall starting this spring. The $2.4 million project will update the curb ramps to American with Disabilities Act standards, add stormwater improvements and upgrade the traffic signals.

This project will cause road closures in phases, according to city documents, and alternative routes will be available. In addition to resurfacing the pavement in front of the mall, the city will reconfigure the West Mall entrance, where there have been 13 left turn crashes and one fatality in the last five years.

Garland Avenue construction from Flora Road to Barker Road

This $2 million project, beginning this spring, is a continuation of a project that began in October of last year. When completed, the road will be a 40-foot wide, two-lane road that stretches for 1 mile between Flora and Barker roads.

The project cost was split between Centennial Properties, a subsidiary of Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review, and the city of Spokane Valley. Centennial Properties owns a significant portion of the land in the area that will be Garland Avenue when the project is completed.

Barker Road reconstruction from Spokane River to Euclid Avenue

As Spokane Valley and the cities on either side of it, Spokane and Liberty Lake, have continued to expand, Barker has needed several improvements. The city of Spokane Valley will begin reconstruction expansion of Barker into a three-lane road from Euclid Avenue to the Spokane River. The road is currently a two-lane road. The $4.5 million project should be finished by fall.

The city of Spokane Valley also plans to spend almost $600,000 on sidewalks. The city will spend $445,000 adding a path between 16th and 22nd avenues on Adam’s Road and $140,000 on the Conklin Road sidewalk.

Park system improvements

CenterPlace Regional Event Center West Lawn Improvements

This Summer the city of Spokane Valley will finish improvements to the West Lawn. The new space is budgeted to cost $2 million and will include a hardscaped plaza with a concert stage and dance area. There will be space for vendors, food trucks, restrooms and a storage building. There will also be upgrades to electricity and lighting on the lawn.

CenterPlace Regional Event Center Roof Replacement

This summer the city will replace the roof on the building, which leaks, with an asphalt shingle roof.

The project should be complete by fall of this year and will cost between $500,000 and $700,000.

Appleway Trail Expansion

This Spring the city of Spokane Valley will continue work on the next section of the Appleway Trail between Evergreen Road to Sullivan Road. The project has been completed section by section over the past five years.

This section will be the final stretch of the linear park. When complete, the trail will run from the heart of Spokane Valley to Liberty Lake. This project is estimated to cost about $2.5 million.