Gnarled with potholes and cracks, 4th St SE has been in need of repair for years. Patching the damage has reached the limit of both economic sense and long-term effectiveness. But now, the city has approved a Street Preservation Project to rebuild a portion of the deteriorated and deficient road.
The preservation project will remove and replace the street’s pavement between Auburn Way S and L St SE. “The roadway between D St SE and L St SE will be removed and replaced with new pavement to the full depth of the pavement section,” explained stated Public Works Director Ingrid Gaub.
Work between Auburn Way South to D Street SE “will include grinding down the top surface of the existing pavement and replacing it with an overlay,” said Gaub. An overlay will be used because this section is in better condition than the remainder of the roadway.
No work will be done between L St SE and M St SE as it remains in good condition from its recent rebuild.
The project’s total cost is an estimated $4.86 million. Roadway work is estimated to cost $2.66 million, which comes from street preservation funds. The estimated cost of necessary utility work is $2.2 million. The utility work associated with the project is “normal repair, replacement, and maintenance of the city’s water and sewer lines. It is included in the current rate structure for these utilities,” said Gaub.
On Friday the city learned it has been awarded a grant for this project. The Transportation Improvement Board awarded the city $1.75 million toward the roadway portion of the project. This grant reduces the city’s total obligation.
Transportation Improvement Board grants are awarded once a year. The City of Auburn is among nine Puget Sound cities to receive funding from the Urban Arterial Program, 28 cities applied. Funding for Transportation Improvement Board grants come from state gas tax revenue.
“[The Transportation Improvement Board] awards projects based on the revenues allocated by the State Legislature in current budgets,” stated Gaub, “so unless the State reduces already approved budgets this would not be rescinded.”
Design for the 4th St SE preservation project is anticipated to begin in early 2021. Gaub estimates construction to be completed by late 2022 or early 2023.
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Regarding the repaving of 4th St. S.E., I have never heard of a project of this type taking over 1 year to complete.
What gives.
Hi Neva,
I reached out to Gaub to get an answer for you. She explained that the phases of a project this size usually takes a year, or more, due to the design and environmental approval process under current rules and regulations. Construction can not begin until these phases are complete. Depending on project size, construction can take multiple construction seasons due to weather dependant work, with every individual aspect of the overall project having its own duration.
Gaub told me that a project the size and scope of the 4th Street project will take more than a year to complete from initial design through to the completion of construction. The construction phase is anticipated to begin in early to mid-2022. She noted that the type of work is very weather-dependent so could carry into 2023 before the project is complete.
Hope this helps clarify for you.
-EM