Indian Trail Revision Could Provide Model For Future Projects
Long-awaited Indian Trail Road improvements scheduled to start this spring will dramatically change the appearance of the two-lane route.
The project covers about two miles, starting at Kathleen and continuing north to Ridgecrest.
The road will be widened to four lanes with a 12-foot-wide center drainage swale landscaped with native plants and grasses.
“We want to make it as natural and drought tolerant as possible,” said Tom Reese, City of Spokane urban designer. “The idea is to complement the native landscape up there.”
Plants may include serviceberry, native wildflowers, bunchgrasses and aspen.
The swale will be 12 feet wide and 1.5 feet deep.
Planners hope Indian Trail will provide a model for future boulevards and street widenings.
Engineers still aren’t sure how well it will work for drainage, especially after heavy snowfall.
“It’s sort of a model. We’re going to build this and see how it works,” said Raymond.
The giant, swaying pine trees along both sides of the road will be replaced with more standard street trees. The type of tree hasn’t yet been decided.
Signals will also be added to help control traffic at three key intersections: Pacific Park, Barnes Road and Shawnee Avenue. Street lighting will be added along the length.
The $4 million project is scheduled to start in May and wrap up in October.
Once construction begins, drivers can count on delays during peak commute hours. “It’s not going to be pretty,” said Dick Raymond, senior engineer for construction services.
Other than unpaved Strong Road and Rutter Parkway to the north, Indian Trail Road is the only way into or out of the area.
Raymond urges commuters to be patient, and to remember that once finished, the road will be a vast improvement.
“We are totally removing what is there now,” he said.
About $2.2 million of the project comes from federal funds, $1.2 million from the state, and the rest will be paid by the city.
Because of the center drainage swale, only a small amount of right-of-way had to be purchased, helping keep down the project cost, said Raymond.
Earlier plans called for swales on each side of the road. The center swale is narrower than the two side swales combined, but has about the same drainage capacity.
The finished road, including sidewalks and swale, will be 79 feet wide. Some residents along Indian Trail Road have landscaped or built fences extending onto the city’s right of way.
“If there is landscaping in an existing right of way, then we will give people a chance to remove it, or we will remove it as part of the project,” said Raymond. “We’ve had to buy very little right of way from private homeowners.”
, DataTimes