Work blocks Centennial Trail

Bikers and runners are in search of new routes after part of the Centennial Trail closed this week near Pasadena Park.

Spokane County on Tuesday closed Upriver Drive between Hodin Drive and Bessie Road, just west of Argonne, to install a sewer. The 37-mile trail between Riverside State Park and the Idaho border is attached to Upriver in that stretch, causing it to shut down as well.

The road and trail are expected to remain closed until about July 6.

South Hill resident Tay Voye, who often bikes on the trail to the Idaho border, said the closure comes at an unfortunate time – with use of the trail increasing for summer.

“It basically severs the trail,” Voye said.

Spokane County Construction Engineer Paul Lennemann said there isn’t a good route around the site. He said he couldn’t think of a way to keep it open without the county purchasing more right-of-way.

“If there were a safe way to get people through there we’d try our darndest to get them through,” Lennemann said. “It’s a tight work space.”

The $3.1 million project will bring a sewer system to areas that had been using septic tanks. New water lines also are being installed.

Kaye Turner, executive director of Friends of the Centennial Trail, said her group didn’t find out about the closure until this week. She said her nonprofit group would have asked the county to consider ways to keep the trail open had it known about construction before it started.

“It’s very disappointing to trail users. There’s not a great way around that part of the trail,” Turner said. “We certainly hope that when agencies are closing a part of the trail, that they publicize it better for the public.”

Lennemann said the county posted signs warning about the construction a couple weeks ago and placed an electronic sign on the site last week. That’s in addition to the legal notices the county completed during the approval process, he said.

Turner said the trail is used about 1.65 million times a year. She added that many use it to commute to work. Some users have told her that they’re detouring to Trent Avenue during the closure.

The county recommends motorists use Trent or Bigelow-Gulch Road. They don’t have a recommended detour for Centennial Trail bikers and pedestrians.

Voye said he thought about using Trent, but with Interstate 90 construction, the route is more congested than usual. Besides, he said, bicyclists don’t generally use Trent “unless you’re suicidal.”