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While bulldozers negotiated their way up and down Argonne Road on Monday night, members of the Millwood City Council spent time discussing the exact route of a $1.3 million project along the town’s main thoroughfare.
Back in February, the council agreed that resurfacing work would take place after sundown to reduce interference with peak traffic times. Project Manager Matt Gillis of Welch-Comer Engineers – the design team that will oversee construction – told council members at the time that refurbishing the road from Frederick to South Riverway would likely take between 60 to 70 working days. The project also includes installation of a new concrete intersection at Euclid and Empire and a series of sidewalk upgrades.
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Work began this week on a $1.3 million project to resurface a section of Argonne Road from Frederick to South Riverway. Construction will take place on weekdays from 7 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. for between 60 to 70 working days.
Photo by: Craig Howard |
The $1.3 million grant for the work was awarded to the city through the Washington Department of Transportation. An additional $120,000 was received for pedestrian improvements through the Transportation Improvement Board.
In April, the council approved a bid from Red Diamond Construction of Spokane Valley to handle the resurfacing work. Initially, Welch-Comer had estimated that the construction portion of the project would amount to around $1.02 million – the winning bid came in at just under $823,000.
On Monday, Mike Schimmels of Red Diamond appeared before council to propose that the traffic configuration be switched to move vehicles to the inside lanes while the outside lanes are being constructed. The original plan involved resurfacing the roadway on the west side of Argonne first and shifting traffic to the opposite side to allow for vehicles to move one-way northbound and one-way southbound.
In both scenarios, the arrangement would be reversed after the new road is in place.
While Schimmels said the change would “quicken up the project,” Gillis expressed concern about the lack of space for motorists traveling along the inside lanes.
“As those outside lanes are being constructed, and you have traffic on the inside center lanes, I think it increases the chance for conflict,” Gillis said.
Gillis added that the Inland Empire Paper Co., which has a large plant on Argonne, had not been consulted about the proposed change.
“My recommendation is to stick with what was bid and approved,” Gillis said.
Brian Werst, Millwood city attorney, agreed.
“I think changing this now would devalue the process,” Werst said. “There has been an abundance of public input and consideration about this because traffic was such a concern of this project.”
In the end, council voted unanimously against Red Diamond’s recommendation.
Council did approve one adjustment to the scope of the project on Monday night, specifically a provision that would allow Mayor Dan Mork to approve an increase of up to 10 percent per line item – or up to 5 percent of the total bid amount – based on potential modifications in the construction schedule.
While Council Member Glenn Bailey voted with the rest of the council in favor of the condition, he emphasized that he “would like to see conformity to the contract so the city doesn’t go way over budget.”
Gillis said changes to the contract become necessary at times, adding that Welch-Comer preferred “to not wait a month between council meetings” in order to proceed with construction.
“There might be a situation where the contractor finds tree roots or poor soil and has to excavate,” Gillis said.
Additional changes beyond the determined percentage would need to be approved by a council vote. Werst said a special meeting could likely be convened within 48 hours.
Responding to a concern raised by Millwood resident Bobbie Beese about the lack of conduits for pedestrian lighting along Argonne, Gillis said that provisions for future lighting are part of the project and “could be included at a small cost.”
“As a sidewalk is removed and a new one put in, that’s the best time to install new lighting,” Gillis said.
With bids coming in lower than anticipated, there has been talk about extending the improvements further south toward Buckeye. Such an expansion, Gillis said, would need to be approved by council and WSDOT.
“The city should talk about extending the project,” Gillis said. “At some point, we’ll need some direction from council.”
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By
Craig Howard
