STANWOOD — How long it will take to get to work or even make a quick trip to the grocery store is on the minds of many people here.
No one denies that the state’s plans to improve Highway 532 should help traffic between I-5 and Camano Island. The narrow Gen. Mark Clark Bridge, the only link between the island and the mainland, is set to be replaced. Crews will also build new intersections, add slow-traffic lanes and repave the road.
But the traffic delays that will start with the work this summer is causing concern for Stanwood officials, business owners and residents.
The state expects the $82 million, 10-mile project to take about two years to complete.
“There are going to be major impacts with major inconveniences, and we need to be able to plan for those impacts,” Papke said. “Our community needs to know what to expect. If it’s hard for customers to get to downtown businesses, they’ll change their shopping habits, and that’s not good for the city.”
There’s also concern about police and firefighters being able to respond to emergencies, Papke said.
Part of the problem is that the “design-build” method with which the project is being tackled doesn’t allow much time for the city to review some of the construction plans, Papke said.
In order to speed up the project and cut costs, some design details will be decided as construction moves along, said Pat McCormick of the state Department of Transportation.
“This project might have taken four years instead of two. We intend to get in, get it done and get out. That’s the goal.” McCormick recently told the Stanwood City Council. “We don’t want to be the big bad boys coming to town, but all construction causes problems.”
Kristine Kaufman lives on Camano Island and commutes daily to her downtown Stanwood business, Snow Goose Bookstore. Tired of traffic accidents and delays, Kaufman said the improvements to Highway 532 can’t come soon enough.
“But I think it’s too bad that the Transportation Department sees their mandate as moving more traffic faster,” Kaufman said. “That’s a small portion of what needs to be done.”
City officials have been successful in asking the state to limit features such as curbs and medians that would have restricted access to some property owners and emergency vehicles in the downtown corridor.
To make the project safer, city officials would like to see a 35 mph speed limit; they would also like to see shade trees planted along the stretch of highway within the city. A speed study is under way, the state’s project engineer Robyn Boyd said.
In addition, the state is investigating whether or not the timing of traffic signals at a number of intersections in the city can be improved, Boyd said
The city also wants the state to take responsibility for keeping motorists informed of construction calendars.
Digital signs alerting drivers, as well as phone numbers people can call to get information, will be posted along the highway, Boyd said.
“We are committed to working with the city,” he said.
Stanwood public works director Andy Bullington said city and state staff meet a couple times a month to talk about the highway project.
“But we still don’t know what detours on city streets will be required during various phases or what kind of impact that will have on city streets. The funding doesn’t allow for resurfacing of our streets,” Bullington said. “The fact is we also will have to deal with people who are going to make their own detour routes.”
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