SEQUIM — The City Council in a 3-2 vote approved Transportation Benefit District dollars for priority projects — North Third Avenue temporary sidewalk improvements between Washington and Fir streets, a four-way stop at the busy intersection of Fir and Sequim Avenue, and downtown bike racks.
The district has $100,000 to allocate this year.
“It’s always a challenge to squeeze in the amount of money we have,” Public Works Director Paul Haines told the Sequim City Council on Monday night, recalling that the council decided this year to focus on pedestrian-oriented projects over those for motorized transportation.
The council, at Haines’ recommendation, approved an asphalt walkway on Third Avenue from Washington Street to the school campuses at Fir Street, a stretch that has spotty sidewalk improvements to no improvements closest to the schools.
The council also settled for the four-way stop sign approach instead of a full or partial traffic signal, which would be a temporary traffic fix at Fir Street and North Sequim Avenue, where school-related traffic empties at the end of class.
The traffic signal would cost up to $250,000, compared with up to $15,000 for stop signs, pavement markings and some sidewalk.
Councilmen Erik Erichsen and Don Hall voted against the measure.
Erichsen wanted a plan in place before making the improvements. Hall objected to the 6-foot-wide asphalt sidewalk, which will cost between $30,000 and $35,000, fearing it could become more permanent than temporary and still be there 20 years from now.
Votes for improvement
Mayor Ken Hays and council members Bill Huizinga and Laura Dubois voted for the improvements.
Council members Ted Miller and Susan Lorenzen were absent.
“Most of the sidewalks in Sequim are from the Roosevelt era,” Huizinga said.
All 2011 funds from the district in excess of $100,000 were committed in 2010 to repay a loan from the city for the completion of the connector road between Grant Street and West Washington Avenue.
Voters approved a two-tenths-of-1-percent sales tax increase to fund the Transportation Benefit District in November 2009.
The city has a plan developed for the improvement of sidewalks, curbs and adjoining street sections for the Third Avenue stretch.
It was developed as part of a Safe Routes Grant program that offered grants for school access safety.
The improvement cost estimate associated with full city standard improvements was $405,000.
The intersection of Fir Street and North Sequim Avenue is a busy school crossing intersection on one of the city’s main arterial roadways, city officials concluded.
Longer-range plans of the city target the location for a full traffic signal.
The estimated cost to design and install a full traffic signal plus some sidewalks, road improvements to accommodate equipment and traffic pattern changes is $200,000 to $250,000.
The city also has $1.2 million in federal Surface Transportation Program, or STP, money available.
The money requires a 20 percent match that can be used on federally classified roadways.
The Sequim Avenue and Fir Street intersection work likely would qualify, Haines said.
The council’s approval authorizing the purchase and installation of bike racks in the downtown area is a straight-forward investment and improvement, city officials said.
The estimated cost to purchase and install a durable and permanent bike locking rack is $300 to $500 each.
City officials said it is easy to identify locations for 10 to 20 racks, at a cost ranging between $3,000 and $10,000.
Sequim High School shop students and teachers are planning to make more bike racks in the future.
