Construction Continues To Cause Traffic Woes

Now that the intersection of 30^th and Harney has reopened, the intersection of 30^th and Reynolds has closed.

Work on a sewer line closed the 30^th and Harney Streets intersection for over two weeks, and the opening of it was delayed by several days. With work complete on that section of the project, work has begun at the intersection of 30^th and Reynolds.

City Manager Janine Jordan says that traffic this morning was not nearly as congested as it was during the 30^th and Harney closure.

“Thirtieth and Harney is a more central location. Thirtieth and Reynolds is further north, and—in fact—Thirtieth really doesn’t continue northward past that intersection in any significant way,” says Jordan. “So, I think that’s probably the reason that Thirtieth and Reynolds is just an easier closure for the community to work through.”

Jordan notes that police were present this morning to help in traffic direction. The department did not have to provide as much assistance as they had planned, but did help with traffic direction near Indian Paintbrush Elementary School.

Jordan says the project started once the project was designed and approved by the council. She notes that the City did not want to delay the project and risk a line failure during the winter months.

“Every year there is a project that runs through the end of what maybe the public would like to be our construction season, which is when school starts and the UW comes back into session and we get heavier traffic loads,” says Jordan. “Unfortunately at 7,000 feet, our construction season is short enough that if we limited it to no work past the date that school or the university starts, I’m not certain we would not be able to accomplish everything we need to in order to keep our systems functional and working properly.”

Jordan says that the city worked hard to begin the project as soon as possible, but says each project runs on its own timeline and must begin after working through the proper procedures.

“When we plan projects, the first phase is the engineering component, and we don’t build anything without engineered plans. I suppose had the plans been completed sooner, we could have begun sooner, but they simply weren’t.”

The intersection at 30^th and Reynolds is scheduled to reopen on Wednesday, September 16. Jordan says at this time she is unaware of anything that would delay the reopening date.

The complete project is expected to be finished at the end of September.