Council to consider Transportation Improvement Plan starting Monday night

By Doug Petrowski

Street, intersections and traffic signal improvements, in addition to new sidewalks, bicycle routes and street lights, are all part of the 2013-2018 six-year Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP) that the Mountlake Terrace City Council will consider for adoption at its next two council meetings on Monday, Nov. 19 and Dec. 3.

The city lists $29.7 million of street improvements it would like to make between now and 2018. Funding sources for the TIP include grants from the federal government, Snohomish County, and the State of Washington; financial partnerships with neighboring cities on adjacent projects; development impact fees and city funds.

More than $6.76 million of city street work is scheduled for 2013, with two major projects making up half of that total: 1) the overlay, chip seal and reconstruction of sections of 228th and 236th Streets Southwest and Cedar Way in the southeast part of Mountlake Terrace, and 2) the reconstruction of Lakeview Trail and an accompanying bicycle lane from the Interurban Trail to the Mountlake Terrace Transit Center at I-5 and 236th Street Southwest.

In another project in the Transportation Improvement Plan, city crews are already replacing 248 street light fixtures around town with LED illumination technology at a cost of $240,000; grants from the state and PUD are covering half of the replacement costs. City officials say the energy efficient fixtures will save the city $16,000 per year in power consumption.

Construction of one major street — the planned Gateway Connector from the Transit Center south through the former site of Evergreen Elementary School to 244th Street Southwest — is also in the six-year transportation plan. The new street has an estimated cost of $4.8 million and is scheduled for design and construction in 2015 and 2016.

The city’s Engineering Services Department presentation of the 2013-2018 six-year Transportation Improvement Plan can be viewed online here.

The city council also is scheduled to take final votes on the 2013-2014 biennial city budget and the 2013 property tax levy at Monday’s city council meeting, with opportunity for the public to comment on each. The council meets at interim City Hall, 6100-219th St. S.W., Suite 200, beginning at 7 p.m.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Real first and last names — as well as city of residence — are required for all commenters.
This is so we can verify your identity before approving your comment.

By commenting here you agree to abide by our Code of Conduct. Please read our code at the bottom of this page before commenting.