29th Avenue work nearly completed
A project to repave 29th Avenue from Southeast Boulevard to Grand Boulevard is expected to be almost complete this weekend.
Though some small tasks may remain, all lanes will be opened to traffic.
Traffic has been forced into just two lanes during the $2.5 million project.
– Amy Cannata
Missing teenage girls were at friend’s house
Spokane police called off a search for two teenagers Thursday morning, after learning that the pair had spent the night at a friend’s house.
By then, however, a dive team had already been called out to search the Spokane River for the 13- and 15-year-old girls, who were last seen Wednesday night, swimming near People’s Park in west Spokane.
Authorities became especially concerned after finding one girl’s clothing near the river, according to a police press release.
The girls were supposed to return home after spending Wednesday afternoon at a mall, police said.
– Staff reports
Coeur d’Alene
New bridge over I-90 to open in mid-August
The new Government Way Bridge that crosses over Interstate 90 is expected to open in mid-August.
The bridge, part of a main north-south route that connects Coeur d’Alene, has been closed for a year while the Idaho Department of Transportation builds a new overpass.
On Wednesday, crews poured 50 yards of concrete for the new steel-girder bridge, department spokeswoman Barbra Babic said.
“There’s no delay,” Babic said, adding that the $2.7 million reconstruction project is actually ahead of schedule. The initial completion date was slated for September or October.
The old bridge, built in 1958, was deteriorating and no longer met interstate standards, Babic said. One lane had been closed for about a year prior to the start of the reconstruction project because of safety concerns after trucks smashed into the bridge.
The new overpass is 17 feet high, about 2 feet taller than the old one. It’s four lanes wide and includes sidewalks.
Once open, Government Way will be four lanes from Harrison Avenue to Dalton Avenue.
– Erica Curless
WENATCHEE
Weather helps crews tackle wildfire
Firefighters began building lines Thursday around a wildfire burning in dense, beetle-killed trees near Winthrop.
The Spur Peak fire had been burning uncontrolled a day earlier, but cooler temperatures and rain Thursday allowed firefighters to begin a direct attack on the blaze about 15 miles north of Winthrop, said Robin DeMario, of spokeswoman for the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.
The fire was estimated at 300 acres.
About 165 firefighters were assigned to the fires. No structures burned, and nobody was hurt. The Forest Service closed several roads and trails in the area.
– Associated Press