News from Snohomish County Council

The County Council recently approved the alignment for the 2.8 mile section of the North Creek Trail between 183rd Street SE and Filbert Road (SR 524). The North Creek Trail is one of many projects funded by King County and managed by Snohomish County as part of an agreement to mitigate the impacts of the Brightwater Wastewater Treatment Plant.

"Snohomish County citizens continue to want more opportunities to walk and bike safely," said Councilmember Dave Gossett. "The North Creek Trail will be both a great recreational and transportation facility."

In early 2010 Snohomish County began Phase I of its plan to build a section of the North Creek Trail between SR 524 and 183rd Street SE, west of the Bothell-Everett Highway. It will be part of a coordinated regional system that will eventually connect the Sammamish River/Burke-Gillman Trail in King County with the Snohomish County Regional Interurban Trail.

At public open houses in June of 2010 a number of possible alignments were presented and analyzed for cost, environmental impacts and constructability. Staff was on hand to discuss the options and answer questions for the 80 plus citizens at the meetings.

After careful analysis and review of citizen comments the options were narrowed to two possible alignments. The two alignments, along with a comparison of the pros and cons of each, were presented at three more public open houses in March, 2011.

"We got great input at the public meetings," noted Gossett. "The preferred alignment to the west along Filbert Drive has a number of significant advantages."

The next phase of the project includes right of way plan preparation and acquisition. County staff members hope to have the ROW plan completed by June 2012 and acquisition completed by 2014.

Transportation Projects Moving Forward

Work is beginning on 3 major Brightwater mitigation transportation projects this year. Snohomish County Public Works is managing the safety improvement projects.

"We will be using low-impact development techniques where possible on these projects," said Gossett. "It's a real opportunity to improve safety while demonstrating environmentally innovative techniques."

The first project is along the 228th Street SE corridor. The project will add curbs, gutters, sidewalks and bike lanes to both sides of 228th Street SE between SR9 and 45th Avenue SE. In addition, Snohomish County will fund an outside lane on the north side of the road for slower westbound traffic climbing the 228th Street SE hill from SR9 and on the south side for traffic climbing the hill eastbound. There will also be a continuous center turn lane. Construction is planned to begin in mid July 2011 and continue through 2012.

The second Brightwater mitigation project is the 45th Avenue SE Walkway (212th St SE to 240th St SE). South of 228th Street SE a five-foot wide porous concrete sidewalk will be added to the east side of the street between 240th Street SE and 228th Street SE. North of 228th Street SE the project will fill in gaps in the sidewalks and walkway on the west side of 45th Avenue SE. This project was underway in June and it is hoped to be completed by the end of July 2011.

"The new sidewalk on the east side will lead to the park that will be built during 2012 at the SE corner of 45^th and 228^th," said Gossett. "It will provide a safe way for people to walk or bike to the new park."

The park is also being funded with Brightwater mitigation dollars.

The third project is along 49th Ave SE (236th St SE to 228th St SE). Residents in this area asked that the project preserve existing landscaping and maintain the rural character of the road and privacy for homes. As a result of their request a straight five-foot wide porous concrete sidewalk with curb and gutter will be built on the west side of the road. The sidewalk is being poured this month and the paving is also expected to be completed by the end of July 2011.

I hope you found this eNEWSLETTER informative and useful. You can make it even more valuable by suggesting topics and issues for future newsletters. Please contact me at 425-388-3494, or e-mail Dave.Gossett@snoco.org. If you would like to share this newsletter, select the Forward email link below.

Sincerely,

Dave Gossett
Snohomish County Council