information from King County

Barton Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control Project
Sunrise Heights and Westwood Neighborhoods
Public Meetings Summary - January 23 and 25, 2014

Overview

King County’s Barton Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control Project team held two community meetings on Thursday, January 23 at Westside School from 6:30 to 8 p.m. and Saturday, January 25, 2014 at the High Point Neighborhood House from 10 to 11:30 a.m. The meetings provided an opportunity for participants to:

 Meet the construction contractors.
 Learn more about construction schedule, activities and planned sequence.
 Hear how King County will work with neighbors during construction.
 See examples of what the future bioretention swales will look like.
 Ask questions about the project.
 Learn more about RainWise.

Approximately 18 people attended the meetings.
This report provides a brief summary of comments and questions submitted by participants at the two meetings.

Meeting Format
Thursday’s meeting began with a short presentation on upcoming construction
activities, following by an open house with seven stations. Saturday’s meeting focused
on the seven stations.

 Project overview
Displays described what a CSO is and why King County selected bioretention swales as the solution to control CSOs in the Barton basin.
This station also had maps of the Barton basin and the blocks selected for bioretention swale construction in 2014 and 2015.

 Construction Schedule
Staff from Goodfellow Brothers Inc., the contractor working on this project, presented a detailed construction schedule and sequence of activities for each block. Participants learned more about construction impacts and saw pictures of typical equipment planned for construction activities.

 Street Plans 2014
Staff from SvR Design Company, the consultant team
working on the project, shared detailed street plans for blocks that will be under
construction in 2014.

 Street Plans 2015
Staff from SvR Design Company shared detailed street plans
for blocks that will be under construction in 2015.

 Landscaping/Maintenance
Staff from SvR Design Company shared design
and maintenance plans for the bioretention swales.

 RainWise
RainWise representatives provided information about the voluntary
incentive program for controlling stormwater pollution on private property. The
RainWise program provides rebates that cover up to 100 percent of the cost of
installing a cistern or rain garden on properties in the Barton basin.

 Kids Activity Table
Hands-on activities were available for kids to learn more
about the water cycle, how to protect the environment using homemade cleaners, and the importance of protecting Puget Sound.

Meeting materials are available on the project website at:
http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Construction/Seattle/BartonCS…

Next Steps
The project team will continue to work closely with residents during construction to provide notifications of upcoming construction activities and impacts, and to solve issues as they arise. Residents will receive flyers in advance of specific construction activities, the project website will be updated with construction schedule details, and the project team will meet with homeowners as needed.

Summary of Questions and Input
The following section summarizes general questions, comments, and discussion from the open house attendees. This summary does not document site-specific issues, which King County will address with individual homeowners.

Questions and comments mainly focused on the following topics:
 Bioretention swales: Participants asked questions about how the bioretention swales and green storm water infrastructure work and what happens if drainage gets blocked. Some people expressed disappointment for not having swales along their street frontage.

 Parking/curb bulbs: Loss of parking remains a concern for some in the community with respect to multiple vehicle households.
 Access: There were questions and comments about maintaining accessibility, especially for those with disabilities.
 Plantings: One participant recommended adding plant labels for each plant palette after the swales are installed.
 Maintenance: Participants expressed a desire for more specific information about frequency and nature of maintenance. There were specific concerns about upkeep of the bioretention swales and impacts on property values. For example, some participants commented that High Point appears to be overgrown and expressed concerns that the Barton project area would experience similar maintenance issues. Participants requested that plants will not be arbitrarily sheared or cut back as done by many commercial landscape maintenance
companies.
 Construction impacts: Desire for more information about the timeline of construction and construction impacts, including impacts to parking and duration of construction.
 Project outreach: Participants commented that they appreciated updates in preparation for construction.

Construction
How long will construction take and how long will a given street be impacted?
Street construction will occur in phases, with eight of the streets scheduled to be built in 2014 and seven in 2015. Each block will see approximately two months of continuous construction activity followed by a little more than two months of plant establishment (minimal work) and close out with a few weeks to perform testing and complete minor work elements.

What can neighbors expect during construction?
During construction, neighbors can expect to see and hear impacts typical of construction such as dust, mud and noise. Our contractor is working to minimize these impacts by working during daytime hours only, cleaning up the jobsite at the end of each day, and coordinating directly with property owners in the construction area.

Will on-street parking be allowed during construction?
During construction, there will be construction equipment and materials on the street. At times, there will be parking restrictions and traffic revisions. You will receive advance notification of construction activities.

Depending on how the work on your particular street is scheduled, there may be periods of inactivity on the street. During that time, crews will secure the work zone and parking will be unrestricted.

What does it mean if a construction is “delayed” on a block?
Four additional streets have been permitted for construction but will only be constructed if additional CSO control is needed based upon CSO event monitoring at the Barton pump station.

Landscaping and Maintenance
What will the landscaping look like after construction?
The grasses, shrubs, and trees installed at construction will grow and change as the landscaping matures. The plants and shrubs in the bioretention swale may not reach full maturity for up to three years following construction, and trees may take longer to mature. In these initial years, the stormwater in the bioretention swale may be more visible.

How will the bioretention swales be maintained?
King County is responsible for maintenance of the bioretention swales, including watering, weeding, and general upkeep to ensure the proper operation of the bioretention system for CSO control. Neighbors can expect to see operations and maintenance crews inspecting and maintaining the systems at least once per month during the winter and more frequently during the growing season.

Staff Attendance
Mary Wohleb, Project Manager, King County
Kristine Cramer, Community Relations, King County
Ukwenga Oleru, Project Representative, King County
Bibiana Ocheke-Ameh, Community Relations, King County
Peg Staeheli, SvR Design Company
Teresa Damaske, SvR Design Company
Steve Burke, SvR Design Company
Kathy Gwilym, SvR Design Company
Jennifer Lathrop, SvR Design Company
Justin Martin, SvR Design Company
Erin Redmond, Goodfellow Brothers Inc.
Todd Flanagan, Goodfellow Brothers Inc.
Jamie Strausz-Clark, PRR
Lynsey Burgess, PRR
Rachel Blomker, PRR
For more information, questions, or concerns, please contact
Kristine Cramer, King County Community Relations
Email: Kristine.Cramer@kingcounty.gov
Phone: (206) 477-5415

Project Website:
http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Construction/Seattle/BartonCS…