Design changes raise Evergreen Way costs

Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, December 31, 2003

EVERETT — The city will spend about 50 percent more than expected on the Evergreen Way construction project.

The City Council on Wednesday approved spiking its budget on the project from $1.48 million to $2.23 million.

One of the main reasons for the unusually large adjustment is that Wilder Construction had to redesign a concrete wall along a hillside because workers discovered groundwater seepage that could have led to a landslide, city engineer Dave Davis said.

Among other things, the extra money also will fund additional traffic control workers requested by area businesses to help customers navigate the construction area, and the removal of fuel tanks discovered in the hillside.

Only $135,000 for the budget change order will come directly from the city budget. The rest will come from a state transportation grant, revenue from the state gas tax and money from a traffic-mitigation fund that developers pay into.

The city hired Perteet Engineering to ensure that the extra costs were justified, Davis said.

The concrete-and-steel wall, which is about 600 feet long and begins just north of 47th Street, will prevent the hillside from falling into the street.

Previously, the hillside sloped down to the road, and pedestrians walked on a dirt path. Wilder Construction is building a third northbound lane and a sidewalk so the hillside will jut up at a steeper angle, requiring the wall.

The city hired GeoEngineers of Redmond early on, but tests yielded no evidence of water, Davis said.

"Groundwater is an indication that the soil above isn’t totally adjoined to the soil below," he said.

Wilder workers later discovered groundwater when they began excavating the hillside in September, he said.

GeoEngineers used standard testing techniques, Davis said. "Unfortunately, we just had bad luck," he added.

The wall is similar to the one originally planned. But the method of building is different. Under the old method, construction workers would have stood between the wall and the hillside, putting them in danger if the hillside were to slip.

"There was a potential for workers to be trapped or pinched between the wall and the hillside," Davis said.

There also was the risk that the backyards of the homes on top of the hill could have tumbled into the street, Davis said.

Under the new, more expensive method, workers will stand outside the wall and drill giant screws to attach it to the hillside.

The Evergreen Way improvements include increasing the number of northbound lanes between 41st and 47th streets from two to three and widening the southbound parking lanes. In the future, if necessary, the southbound lanes could be used for traffic instead of parking, Davis said. A third southbound lane in that area is not necessary at this time, he said.

The project is the last of a series of improvements to Evergreen Way that the City Council envisioned in 1976, Davis said. At that time, Evergreen Way was two lanes in each direction, with a left-turn lane. Now, it is three lanes in each direction, except for a few short stretches.

The project should be complete by February, he said.

The City Council vote to approve the additional spending was 4-0. Council members Arlan Hatloe, Bob Overstreet and Dale Pope were absent.

Reporter David Olson: dolson@heraldnet.com or 425-339-3452