Sidewalk, storm water system and Appleway Trail extension projects planned

In addition to park improvements and road construction, the city of Spokane Valley is also in the middle of smaller projects, including a new sidewalk on Park Road and stormwater improvements along Appleway Boulevard that include extending the Appleway Trail.

The Appleway storm water project is just beginning and is expected to be completed in October, said city spokesperson Jeff Kleingartner. The project includes the installation of bio-infiltration swales, which will filter stormwater before it gets down to the aquifer, between Farr and University roads.

“These bio-infiltration swales provide enhanced treatment of the intercepted runoff, meeting water quality standards,” Kleingartner said.

The stormwater system currently in place includes catch basins and drywells. Those will remain in place in order to provide overflow capacity to the system, he said.

Over the past several years the city has constructed the 11.5-mile Appleway Trail on the old Milwaukee Railroad right of way between University Road and the eastern city limits. The trail’s amenities include restrooms, drinking fountains and benches. But the city doesn’t want the trail to end there, Kleingartner said.

“The goal has always been to connect it to Balfour Park,” he said.

Balfour Park is at Balfour Road and Main Avenue, not far from where the trail currently ends at Appleway and University. An expansion of the park is planned, along with the construction of a Spokane County Library branch.

Rather than include an asphalt trail as part of the Appleway stormwater project to continue the trail westward, the city opted for an offset sidewalk, Kleingartner said. The separation between the sidewalk and the street will give the city a place to put snow in the winter, he said.

“The offset sidewalk allows snow to be plowed into the bio-infiltration swales,” he said. “These facilities are then able to provide treatment during the melt off.”

The sidewalk will stretch from University to Farr, and a connection to Balfour Park will be made at a later time, Kleingartner said. Once c onstruction of the trail extension is complete, it will be patrolled by Spokane Valley police officers on bicycles, as done on the rest of the Appleway Trail, Kleingartner said.

Traffic in the area will be impacted during construction. Dartmouth Road will be closed, and the far north and south lanes of Appleway Boulevard will be closed.

The estimated cost of the project is $1.4 million, the majority of which is funded by the city. A Department of Ecology grant will cover $655,000 of the cost.

A project to add a sidewalk to the west side of Park Road between Sharp Avenue to Mission Avenue is also underway. A pedestrian refuge island will also be added to the crossing at Park and Cataldo Avenue.

The street will remain open during construction, which is expected to be complete in mid- to late July. The cost of the project is estimated at $600,000, with funds coming from the city and the Transportation Improvement Board.

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Nina Culver can be reached at nculver47@gmail.com