There is definitely more road work going on and some new projects have joined the ranks in Spokane Valley in Liberty Lake. Traffic is down to one lane in each direction on Pines Road between Sprague and Broadway for signal conduit work, which is slowing traffic. That will continue Monday through Thursday until July.

Of course, Sullivan Road construction is ongoing between the Spokane River and Trent. Traffic there is also down to one lane in each direction, so expect slow going. Knox is shut down just west of Vista for utility work. A detour is in place for the project, which should be done sometime tomorrow.

New this week is a partial shutdown of the Harvard Road bridge over I-90 in Liberty Lake. Work starts today to repair the bridge joints and will continue through Thursday. The bridge will be limited to single lane alternating traffic directed by flaggers, so expect a wait if you have to go through that area.

John Rice, 15, acts out an improvisation scene with Tori Heischel during a creative writing exercise designed to show how characters influence story on Tuesday at RiverCity Leadership Academy in the West Valley School District. RiverCity will close at the end of the school year. SR photo/Tyler Tjomsland

Good Monday morning, everyone. You may have noticed that I ducked out of the office on Friday and didn't post on the blog, but I'm back now with some highlights from Saturday's Valley Voice. Anyone who drives down Sullivan Road will notice that a construction project has begun north of the Spokane River to Trent. Over the next six weeks or so northbound and southbound traffic will be limited to one lane each direction, so be prepared if you need to head that way.

Reporter Lisa Leinberger had a story on West Valley's RiverCity Academy, which is closing for good at the end of the current school year. Enrollment at the project-based school is down to 17 and the students will go to other alternative schools in the area.

Lisa also had a story on a driving tour of the Lake Saltese area organized by the Spokane Valley Heritage Museum. The tour, which was held over the weekend, visited several historical sites in the area. The former Lake Saltese was drained in 1894 to create the Morrison Ranch.

A big crowd turned out for last week's meeting on whether or not there should be an I-90 overpass at University Road. Several neighborhood residents were there to speak out against doing such a project while others were in favor of at least a pedestrian/cyclist overpass. Right now no construction project is planned, the city is doing a study on whether an overpass is needed.

There will be a bunch of road construction projects underway next week that could affect your normal driving route, so you might want to start planning alternate routes. There will be sidewalk work on 24th Avenue between Adams and Sullivan between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays. The project will continue through mid-May.

Park Road will be down to one lane just south of Valleway on Tuesday only. Utility work will be underway from 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Work will continue on Pines Road near Alki. Signal work will create northbound curb lane closures on Sullivan bewtween Sprague and I-90 beginning Monday.The work will be done between 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.  

It must be spring, because road work is starting in Spokane Valley. Yesterday I drove down Pines Road and stormwater improvement work has begun near Alki. Yesterday crews were working in the southbound lanes and traffic was down to one lane. After the work is complete, the giant puddle that forms in the northbound lanes whenever it rains should be a thing of the past.

Work is starting today on the Sullivan Road corridor between Sprague Ave. and I-90 and on Sprague between Sullivan and Evergreen Road. Crews will be working to install traffic management cameras and link the traffic signals together. The westbound Sprague curb lane and the northbound Sullivan curb lane are closed, so there may be more congestion than usual. The project is expect to last through mid-May and access to businesses will remain open.

Chloe Chalfant, 13, a seventh-grader a East Farms, raises her hand during math class on March 6. SR photo/Tyler Tjomsland

There was a bunch of news packed into Saturday's Valley Voice. First is a primer on your commuting routes this summer - a story outlining all the road construction projects coming up this year in Spokane Valley. There's also a major project planned in Liberty Lake, the installation of a roundabout at Harvard Road and Mission Ave. Major projects are also coming to Argonne Road, Sullivan Road, Pines Road and Sprague Ave.

Reporter Lisa Leinberger had a story on the SeaPerch team at North Pines Middle School. The two students built an underwater remote-operated vehicle (ROV) and won a regional contest. There are a series of fundraisers planned to send the team to the National Sea Perch Challenge in Indianapolis.

Now that Lisa is back, so is the East Farms Diary. This most recent entry focuses on discipline at the K-8 school. School staff report that older students typically don't mix with younger students and when they do, the older students are on their best behavior.

A Spokane County Superior Court Judge has ruled that the Hollywood Erotic Botique location on East Sprague in Spokane Valley is a public nuisance and in violation of the city's zoning ordinance. The court case is expected to continue, however, since the attorney representing the business owner indicated he was prepared to argue that the city's ordinance was unconstitutional.

The Spokane Valley Fire Department saw a large spike in reported firefighter injuries in 2012, but it is the result of a new focus on reporting every injury, no matter how slight. The number of arsons was also up in 2012, but that blip can be traced to an arson spree last summer than involved fires in dumpsters behind businesses.

Jerry Kienbaum talked about collecting snowmobiles for his museum in Greenacres on Monday. SR photo/Kathy Plonka

The top news in today's Valley Voice is reporter Lisa Leinberger's story on the East Valley School District's continuing transition to a K-8 education model. The district has had several meetings lately and heard emotional testimony from parents. On Tuesday they voted unanimously to moved the preschool and other special programs to East Valley Middle School in the fall.

Lisa also has a story on Spokane Valley resident Jerry Kienbaum, who has spent years amassing a collection of vintage snowmobiles. He runs the Northwest Museum of Vintage Snowmobiles.

Spokane County is planning several upgrades to the Argonne Road corridor north of the Spokane Valley city limits over the next few years, replacing pavement and adding sidewalks. The only project scheduled for this year is the replacement of the Bruce Road bridge over Deadman Creeek south of Mount Spokane Park Drive.

The Spokane Valley City Council spent some time Tuesday on how to avoid a bill of over $300,000 when new limits on the number of misdemeanor cases public defenders can handle take effect in October. That amount would be the city's share of seven new attorneys Spokane County might have to hire to help with the load. The increased cost would be charged to the city every year.

Spokane County engineers will host an open house from 4 to 7 p.m. today at Pasadena Park Elementary School, 8508 E. Upriver Drive, to discuss upcoming projects on or near the Argonne Road corridor north of the Spokane Valley city limits. Projects to be discussed include a sidewalk at Pasadena Park Elementary, the Argonne Road grade separation project for the Centennial trail, work on the Argonne/Upriver Drive intersection and the reconstruction of Argonne Road from Wellesley to Bigelow Gulch.

Additional upcoming projects are the Bruce Road preservation project from Stoneman Road to Peone Road and the Bruce Road reconstruction project from Peone Road to Day-Mount Spokane Road.

People will be asked to give their input on the projects, some of which are contingent on getting grant funding.   

Ralph and Geraldine Reifenberger live near Fairfield on farmland that has a 97-year-old barn on the property. They have been married for 63 years. SR photo/Dan Pelle

We packed a ton of news into today's Valley Voice, starting with a profile of new Spokane Valley City Councilman Rod Higgins. His background is mostly in the mining industry, but it includes detrours as a seed farmer, mail sorter and a broker.

Reporter Nicole Hensley has two reports from the East Valley School District. One story looks at the aftermath of the district's fifth bond failure. The second looks at the district's plans to take over the former Walker Army Reserve Center off Sullivan Road. The property was declared surplus and isn't costing the district any money to acquire.

The Spokane Valley City Council met to talk about road construction projects in 2013. The Mayor also gave SCOPE an award and key to the city in recognitition of their positive impact on the community.

Correspondent Cindy Hval tops it all off with a Love Story on Fairfield couple Ralph and Geraldine Reifenberger.  

The city of Spokane Valley has announced that it will close the eastbound lane of Mission Ave. between Union Road and Bowdish road for paving on Thursday beginning at 7 a.m. Eastbound traffic will be detoured to Broadway Ave. via Bowdish. The paving project is expected to be complete by 7 p.m.

Pines Road will be down to a single lane of traffic between 16th and 24th during a sidewalk infill project that is expected to start today or Tuesday. Flaggers will be there to direct traffic through the work zone, but it would probably be faster to find another route. Pedestrians will be allowed on the west side of the street only. The project is expected to last six weeks.

Fancher Road will be completely closed this weekend from 7 p.m. Saturday to 6 a.m. Sunday between Sprague Ave. and Broadway Ave. for paving. Drivers can use Havana as an alternate route.

The city of Spokane Valley has put out a flurry of press releases this week announcing a whole bunch of road construction projects coming up as they try to finish as much as they can before the weather gets too cold. The good news is, most of the projects are small and won't cause much of a disruption. So, here we go.

Crews are expected to be working on Argonne Road between Indiana and Trent next week. The work will take place at night and all lanes will be open during the day. There will be one lane of traffic in each direction between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. The project should last about a week.

Sands Road between Bowdish and Bates will be closed from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday for a community service project at the cemetery. On Monday there will be work on Carnahan Road between 16th and Kahuna that will leave only a single lane open.

Work is expected to start next week on Fancher Road between Sprague and Broadway. Traffic will be limited to one lane in each direction. The project is expected to last until early October. The stormwater swales on the south side of Sprague Avenue will be getting some improvements between Park Road and Thierman Road. Road work is included in the project, which should last until late October.

Work on University Road between Union and Main is continuing and should be completed by early October. The planned start to resurface Mission Ave. between Union and Pines Road has been postponed to late September or early October.

That's where things stand right now, but road construction is somewhat famous for its unpredictability.

Rob Bockemuehl cleans around a water valve as a road grader prepares the intersection of 24th Avenue and Evergreen Road for paving, Aug. 27. SR photo/Dane Pelle.

Today may be the first day of school for many, but it is also the day to get caught up on some highlights from Saturday's Valley Voice. Some major Spokane Valley road construction projects are wrapping up, much to the relief of drivers. There are still a few small projects coming up, but none will last longer than two weeks.

Reporter Lisa Leinberger stopped by the groundbreaking for the new Spokane Valley Tech skills center in the old Rite Aid at University and Sprague. The building was purchased by the Central Valley School District for a new skills center, but it will also be used by the West Valley, East Valley and Freeman school districts.

The annual Valleyfest event is fast approaching and there are several new things coming during this year's three day festival. The new items include discounts and coupons at local businesses, a new walk benefitting Down Syndrome research and Babyfest.

Good news for Spokane Valley drivers: 32nd Avenue between Avalon and Best is scheduled to reopen today. Evergreen Road between 16th and 24th Avenues is also set to reopen by the end of the day today, but the remainder of Evergreen from 24th to 32nd is expected to remain closed until Thursday. I'm sure completion of the project will also come as a relief to residents who live along the route.

Readers may notice that I said paving of Sprague Avenue between Evergreen and Sullivan was to begin at 6 p.m. yesterday, but nothing happened. Apparently the contractor had a mechanical problem at its plant last night right when paving was supposed to begin. But I'm told everything is fixed and ready to go for 6 p.m. tonight. The paving of the north lanes of Sprague is expected to be complete at 6 a.m. Thursday, barring any more last minute problems.

Word has it that the north side of Sprague Avenue will be paved between Evergreen and Sullivan Roads beginning at 6 p.m. today. The road has been undergoing full reconstruction for months and this will be the final paving. The work is expected to continue through Wednesday night. The south side of Sprague will be paved at some point next week. I'll have more details on that coming later.

I'm not sure if it's really part 12, but that's what it feels like as Spokane Valley pushes forward on more road construction projects. The Sprague Avenue reconstruction project east of Evergreen Road is continuing, as is the grind and overlay of Dishman-Mica Road between 16th Avenue and Schafer Road and the work on Evergreen Road from 16th to 32nd.

New this week is the closure of 32nd Avenue between Avalon and Best. The road will be closed to all traffic until early September, so plan to detour around the area. Starting Thrusday the westbound curb lane of Sprague Avenue will be closed at Custer Road for the installation of traffic signal poles. That project is expected to continue through Aug. 21. The completion of University Road south of Fourth Avenue is also scheduled to start Thursday.

We got an email yesterday asking about the status of University Road, so I thought I'd post some information for anyone who hasn't spotted the occasional updates in my city council stories. The pavement on University between Fourth and 16th Avenues was ground down several weeks ago, but then work stopped and hasn't resumed. The city had Poe Asphalt do the grinding under the city's street maintenance contract with Poe, but the contract ran out of money before the project was complete. The city then put the paving portion of the project out to bid, which does take some time.

The good news is that the bid has been awarded and the most recent news from the city indicates the contractor will start work on Aug. 9. It will take about a week to complete the sealing, paving and striping and then the road will be as good as new.

The intersection of Fourth Ave. and Herald Road will be closed to all traffic from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday for utility work. Detour information will be posted, but it's probably best to avoid the area if you can.

Several new road construction projects are starting today in Spokane Valley. The streets affected are Fourth Avenue form Dishman-Mica to Farr Roads, Dishman-Mica from 16th Avenue to Schafer Road, and Vista Road from Mission to Nora avenues. All three street preservation projects will include new asphalt overlays and are expected to last two weeks each. Click here for more details about how traffic will impacted.