MARYSVILLE — First Street is going to look more like a construction zone starting next week.
Fences will be popping up and equipment is moving in Monday to start work on the First Street bypass.
The road will be widened from two to five lanes between State and Alder avenues. It also will be extended by about three blocks, to 47th Avenue NE.
The Marysville City Council earlier this week unanimously voted to hire Scarsella Bros., Inc. to complete the nearly $13 million job.
Crews are first starting work between Alder and 47th avenues, adding to the street. After that, they’ll begin to widen the existing pavement.
It’s expected to be finished by the end of summer 2020.
No roads are going to be closed at this time, but there will be more vehicles on First Street than usual, said Steve Miller, senior project manager for the city.
“We do expect there is going to be truck traffic,” he said. “There will be trailers, equipment, that kind of thing.”
Every house on the south side of the street has been demolished. The last home was knocked down Monday, city spokeswoman Connie Mennie said.
One main purpose of the bypass is to relieve traffic on Fourth Street. Someday, between the bypass and a new I-5 interchange, commuters will be able to avoid the train tracks by Cedar Avenue.
A couple of years after the bypass is finished, the state Department of Transportation expects to open the exit to I-5 off of Highway 529.
In addition, the state agency has decided to open another lane on the interstate during peak congestion hours. It would stretch from Marine View Drive in Everett to Fourth Street in Marysville.
Those projects are set to be finished in 2022.
There’s even more construction happening within a mile of the bypass.
Nearby, a crane can be seen from I-5. It’s helping to build a new casino in southeast Tulalip, across the street from the Quilceda Creek Casino.
In Marysville, a civic center is going in along Delta Avenue, between Fourth and Eighth streets. It will include a new police station and jail. Construction is slated to begin next year.
Stephanie Davey: 425-339-3192; sdavey@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @stephrdavey.
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