Everyone knows about the big I-5 road work that is coming in 11 short days, but Alki residents beware! There is another project in store for us this fall that will last far longer than the 19 days planned for I-5: the 53rd Avenue Pump Station project. [kc]

From what I gathered at the community council meeting a few months ago, the project is scheduled to commence this September and last for 18-20 months. While the improvements are much needed and will help with general overflow and smell issues in the area, traffic will be snarled for quite a while. The county planner indicated that Harbor Avenue will be one lane only for both directions and that the construction vehicles will use Harbor Avenue in to travel back and forth from the main pump station around the point. I have not yet heard how the water taxi shuttle will be affected, but one imagines that the already crazy summer traffic here on the beach is about to get much much worse. Plan accordingly.

Also, if you’d like further information, the planner has been at all of the recent community council meetings in order to detail changes and gather more feedback from residents so I suspect you will see her at the August meeting. However, if you cannot wait until then, her contact information is in the latest press release for last month’s ACC. [kc] Failing all those methods, a 24-hour hotline is planned for the duration of the project allowing an outlet for everyone who wants to complain about (or ha ha ha praise) the effort. I suspect that they may regret setting that one up. But that could just be the cynic in me.

Related posts:

1. Pearl Harbor Day
2. Traffic Watch
3. Traffic Warning: Alaskan Way Viaduct
4. Traffic Advisory: 520 Bridge Closure This Weekend
5. Is traffic better?