Beacon Hill Blog

Plan ahead: 12th Ave S closure and detour May 18-20

The Seattle Department of Transportation wants you to know that streetcar construction will force some lane closures on 12th Avenue South from May 18 through 20. This will affect vehicles traveling from the International District to North Beacon Hill. Here’s the announcement:

Next weekend (May 18 to 20) the southbound lane of 12th Avenue South will be closed at South Jackson Street in the Little Saigon neighborhood for First Hill Streetcar track construction.

SDOT’s contractor will close the street from 7 a.m. on Saturday, May 18 until Monday morning. Southbound vehicles will be able to turn east or west onto South Jackson Street. For vehicles traveling to Beacon Hill, the detour will be eastbound on S Jackson Street to southbound Rainier Avenue South, and then westbound on South College Street.

The detour will be signed to assist drivers traveling through this intersection. Local access, pedestrian access, and access to businesses will be maintained.

Uniformed police officers will be on-site to keep traffic moving at the South Jackson Street and 12th Avenue South intersection.

For further information, visit the project Website at www.seattlestreetcar.org.

Tags: construction, street closures

12th and Jackson intersection to close for construction

You will need to detour around the the intersection of 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street just north of Beacon Hill this weekend as construction for the First Hill Streetcar continues. The intersection at the heart of Little Saigon will be closed Saturday and Sunday, February 2 and 3, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day. Police and flaggers will be there to direct traffic and ensure that businesses and residences are accessible.

The planned detours:

• Eastbound traffic – south on Fourth Avenue S, east on Seattle Blvd S, east on S Dearborn St
• Westbound traffic – northwest on Boren Ave S, west on Yesler Way
• Northbound traffic – east on S College St, north on Rainier Ave S, northwest on Boren Ave S
• Southbound traffic – west on Yesler Way, south on Second Ave S Extension

Tags: construction, street closures

Columbian Way ramps to West Seattle and southbound I-5 closed this weekend

by Broch Bender, WSDOT

If you’re traveling from Beacon Hill to West Seattle or southbound I-5 this weekend, plan ahead. The S. Columbian Way shortcuts to the west and south will be off-limits to traffic around-the-clock for WSDOT bridge expansion joint replacement work. (Keep in mind, the detour may add five or ten minutes to your Costco run or West Seattle Junction jaunt.)

Here’s what’s closed: 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 18 through 5 a.m. Monday, Jan. 21

• S. Columbian Way to southbound I-5
• S. Columbian Way to West Seattle Bridge
• S. Columbian Way to 6th Ave. S. (AKA: Route to Costco)

The signed detour will direct Beacon Hill drivers south on 15th Ave. S. to a turn-around point on Corson Ave. S. From there motorists can access southbound I-5, or follow signs to West Seattle and 6th Ave. S. using northbound I-5.

Residents living near I-5 may hear loud construction work, especially at night. Crews will shroud the work zone with noise-deadening shields, but if it’s too noisy, residents can pick up a free pair of earplugs at the Jefferson Community Center (3801 Beacon Ave. S.) or call the project’s 24-hour construction noise hotline at (206) 440-4DOT (4368).

Tags: construction, detours

Columbian Way/West Seattle interchange repair work continues this weekend

The ramps from South Columbian Way to the West Seattle Bridge and Sixth Avenue South will be closed all weekend (January 11-14) for the continuing bridge expansion joint replacement project. The closures will begin at 10 p.m. on Friday night, and end at 5 a.m. Monday morning. A detour will be provided for drivers needing to access the West Seattle Bridge or Sixth Avenue South via I-5.

This nighttime work is noisy, and nearby North Beacon neighbors may hear it. If the noise is bothersome, you can call 206-440-4DOT (4368) to receive a free pair of earplugs or pick up a pair in person at Jefferson Community Center.

The project will continue through April. Find out more about the project and download a detour map at the project website.

Tags: construction, noise, west seattle bridge

WSDOT warns neighborhood: construction to be noisy

Enjoy holiday peace and quiet while you can. According to the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), neighbors living near I-5 need to prepare for noisy construction work over 11 weekends starting on January 4, 2013 and ending in April. This is to replace 31 steel expansion joints in ramps on northbound I-5 near Georgetown, and between I-5 and the West Seattle Bridge, 6th Avenue South, South Spokane Street, and Columbian Way South.

WSDOT warns that nearby neighbors may hear jackhammers, sawcutters, air-powered tools, and other noise. Work crews will use noise shields when feasible. If you want to ensure your sound sleep, free earplugs are available to nearby residents; call 206-440-4699 for more information.

Along with the noise, there will be complete closures of the affected ramps during work weekends, and occasionally during the week. Detours will be provided.

See more about the project here.

Tags: construction, detours, noise

Airport Way South Viaduct Construction to Begin November 28

The Airport Way South Viaduct in neighboring Georgetown, just north of South Lucile Street, will be closed to all traffic beginning on November 28 for up to 14 months while the bridge is rehabilitated by the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT).

Vehicles and pedestrians will be detoured to Fourth Avenue South via South Lucile and South Industrial Way, and bicycles will be detoured all the way west to First Avenue South via South Lander Street. (Which seems like a heck of a long detour.) Denver Avenue South and South Dawson Street between Lucile and Fourth will be used as a northbound truck detour route. See a map of the detour routes here.

Crews will work from 6 a.m to 5 p.m. weekdays, as well as on some nights and weekends. Expect traffic delays in the area.

The rehabilitation project includes seismic retrofitting of the 83-year-old bridge just west of Beacon Hill and I-5. The viaduct bears 13,000 vehicles daily.

The project website is here.

Tags: construction, detours, georgetown

Big trucks busy on Beacon Hill

There’s lots of construction happening on the hill right now. Work on Beacon Mountain has begun in Jefferson Park. Fire Station 13 is getting a fancy temporary parking structure for the fire trucks in preparation for construction work to make the building more stable during an earthquake. The temporary public pay lot at El Centro is being graded and drainage installed; the goal is for the lot to be completed within a month.

Each project is noteworthy in its own way, but all Beacon Hill toddlers and preschoolers need to know is: BIG TRUCKS! Lots of big trucks! Please allow extra time on your next outing to appreciate them.

Tags: beacon mountain playground, construction, el centro de la raza, jefferson park, parking, trucks

Rizal Bridge lane to be closed for maintenance

Seattle Department of Transportation crews will close the northbound, right lane of the Dr. Jose Rizal Bridge from July 11 to July 29, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. The closure will allow crews to perform maintenance work underneath the bridge deck. Be aware that there may be some congestion in the area.

Tags: construction, street closures

Chief Sealth Trail extension nearly done

The Chief Sealth Trail northward extension project is nearly completed. The Seattle Department of Transportation told us recently that the asphalt surface paving is done, and only the final stages of construction remain, including minor paving work, storm drainage, signage and bollard installation, hydroseeding, and cleanup.

There will continue to be intermittent traffic restrictions through mid-November on South Angeline Street (east of 15th Avenue South), South Ferdinand Street (between 17th Avenue South and 19th Avenue South), Columbia Drive South (between South Ferdinand Street and South Pearl Street) and Beacon Avenue South (curb lane only between South Bennett and South Ferdinand streets). See the map at the end of this post for these locations.

The trail is being extended northwesterly, following the City Light corridor from the intersection of Beacon Avenue South and South Dawson Street to a point near the intersection of South Angeline Street and 15th Avenue South.

Seattle Bike Blog has noted how useful the trail is for providing connections for cyclists to ride from Rainier Beach to Sodo and Capitol Hill.

View Traffic restriction locations, 11/10 in a larger map

Tags: chief sealth trail, construction, traffic alerts

Jefferson Park opening delayed by a month

Andy Sheffer from Seattle Parks and Recreation sent out a letter yesterday with some disappointing news:

Dear Jefferson Park Community,

We are all excited about the opening of Jefferson Park and the construction crews are on the home stretch. We were hopeful that we would be able to open the park early because the general contractor was ahead of schedule. Unfortunately, we need to change the proposed park opening date from Saturday, September 18, 2010 to October 23, 2010 (or thereabouts) for the following reasons:

• Despite commitments, the landscape installation is not progressing at the rate needed for completion by September.
• If we hurry the contractor to complete the final work I know that a lot of important “finessing” will be omitted. Our commitment is to ensuring that the final product is as optimal as possible.
• Several areas on site contain unsuitable soils for paving. These areas have to be over-excavated and filled with suitable material. We waited until now in the hope that the areas would dry out but that has proven not to be the case.

I was made optimistic by the progress of general contractor at the onset of the project. Unfortunately, the detailed finish work has been painstakingly slow. The contractor was given a specific number of days to finish the project and it’s their prerogative to utilize as many contract days as necessary to finish.

While I understand that this is disappointing news, I hope that you will understand a delay of one month will pay great dividends in terms of delivering a park project that is as nearly perfect as we are able to achieve. And, the news is not all bad. We anticipate that the play area will open by the end of August. (Emphasis ours — BHB.) I look forward to celebrating the grand opening of this wonderful park with you in October.

Please feel free to contact me anytime to further discuss the project.

Respectfully,

Andy Sheffer

If you have questions, you can reach Andy Sheffer at andy.sheffer@seattle.gov.

Tags: construction, jefferson park