City, regional and state officials joined in a ribbon cutting last week to mark completion of phase one of Des Moines' 16th Avenue South Improvement Project.
Mayor Bob Sheckler noted that even as construction costs skyrocket, the $5.8 million project was completed "quickly, smoothly and within budget."
Work was finished a month ahead of schedule, "which means an awful lot to people who were affected by the project," Sheckler said.
Phase one, which encompasses a mile of 16th Avenue South Street from South 260th to South 272nd Street and goes past Woodmont Elementary School, widened the roadway from two lanes to include a left-turn lane, increased water capacity, and added an underground storm drainage system.
Overhead wiring was relocated to one side to the street to reduce visual clutter. The Midway Sewer District installed a new sewer main as part of the project.
Safety enhancements include sidewalks, improved street lighting, a clearly marked school crossing, and a new traffic signal system at South 260th Street and Woodmont Drive South that is designed to reduce travel delays.
"I am so pleased by the final outcome," Sheckler added. "This is a true, safe-walk route for elementary school children."
State Transportation Improvement Board member Jeanne Burbidge, who also is a Federal Way City Council member, said the agency "is very pleased to return $3 million of your gasoline tax to the city of Des Moines.
"This improved corridor will make a huge difference to the [local] commute," she said.
Grant Fredricks, director of the Des Moines Planning, Building and Public Works Department, expressed the city's gratitude to the 33rd Legislative District delegation, who helped supply funding for the phase one project.
"The partners who we appreciate the most, without whose cooperation this project would not have been possible, are the neighbors," he added.
Scarsella Bros. Inc. was the general contractor. KPG and DMJM Harris and were the engineering and construction management firms.
Additional improvements to 16th Avenue South are planned to improve the street from a two-lane rural road with open ditches into a landscaped city arterial. The city is pursuing funding for the next phases of this project.
