PORT TOWNSEND — Port Townsend Public Works installed permanent wooden bollards at both ends of Adams Street after the city council voted to have the street permanently closed to vehicle traffic.
While there is no timeline for further street enhancements, there are plans to have the street be part of the walking and biking trail system in Port Townsend, said Laura Parsons, city civil engineer.
The city council voted 6-1 in favor of closing the street in May, with Mayor Michelle Sandoval casting the lone dissenting vote.
Adams Street is one of the few streets that connect downtown with uptown Port Townsend. However, none of the houses along the street have driveways that open to it.
The block-long portion of the road has been closed for more than a year, when it was used as a staging area for a construction crew that installed sidewalks on Jefferson Street.
Afterward, a months-long public process was conducted as residents weighed in on whether the street should be reopened to vehicle traffic or not, and the majority wanted to keep the street closed, Parsons said.
“There was a really robust public engagement period, and people weighed in with their thoughts of if they even wanted the street closed or not, and some added what they might want to see in the future as well,” Parsons said.
The Jefferson County Public Utility District will lay electrical conduit under the street from Jefferson Street to Clay Street during the next few days, Parsons said.
The bollards were made by Arrow Lumber and cost $2,500 plus staff time, she added.
Public Works will need to coordinate the next steps of connecting the street to the trail system with the city parks and recreation department. After the conduit is laid, Parsons doesn’t expect any further developments to the street through the winter.
“It really remains to be seen how that transition will happen,” she said. “We’ll need to coordinate with parks, and maybe the non-motorized community will weigh in, in some way.
“It’s a work in progress.”
There six total bollards, with three on each end of the street. The center one on each end is padlocked but is able to be unlocked and removed to allow a small vehicle, if necessary, while the the four end posts are cemented into the ground, Parsons said.
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Jefferson County Reporter Zach Jablonski can be reached at zjablonski@peninsuladailynews.com.
