June 3, 2003 News Release Temporary traffic revisions continue in south Lake Union area because of sewer construction Traffic and street revisions are continuing in the south Lake Union area of Seattle to allow construction of four wastewater pipelines as part of the Denny Way Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control Project. Some closures have been in effect for the past six to nine months. Other closures and traffic detours are anticipated during remaining construction activities. Construction is expected to end in early 2004. The Denny Way CSO Control Project is a $140 million effort of King County's Wastewater Treatment Division and the City of Seattle (Seattle Public Utilities) to protect public health and water quality. The project will significantly reduce discharges of combined sanitary sewage and stormwater into Lake Union and Elliott Bay during heavy rains. Frank Coluccio Construction Co. is building the four new sewer pipelines. The contractor is tunneling three of the pipelines, which significantly reduces construction impacts to roadways and communities along the pipeline alignments. The contractor, however, must set up work areas at the beginning and end of each tunnel for access to the tunnels and to insert and remove the tunnel-boring machine. The following traffic revisions have been or will be put in place at each work site in the south Lake Union area. Roy Street and Dexter Avenue North One block of Roy Street, between Eighth Avenue North and Dexter Avenue North, has been closed to all traffic since September 2002. It will stay closed to all traffic until the contractor finishes work in mid-2004. A traffic revision is in place on Dexter Avenue North between Roy and Mercer streets, reducing Dexter to one lane in each direction. This traffic revision will stay in place through summer 2003 to enable nighttime construction. Work at this location will take place between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. The contractor will restore Dexter to its original condition in early fall 2003. The main staging area for building all south Lake Union pipelines is at Roy Street and Eighth Avenue North. It is called the East Portal because it is also the east end of the recently completed Mercer Street CSO Storage Tunnel. During rainstorms, King County Wastewater Treatment Division will divert wastewater flows into the Mercer Street tunnel through the south Lake Union pipelines. By storing flows in this tunnel, King County will be able to control releases of untreated CSO flows into Lake Union. Republican Street and Eighth Avenue North This intersection, closed to traffic since September 2002, will stay closed through fall 2003. A detour route is in place along Mercer Street. The contractor dug a shaft in the intersection to be a receiving pit for a tunnel-boring machine. After completion of tunneling, the contractor will build a permanent underground wastewater flow regulator here. Once the project is finished, the contractor will restore the street surface and reopen the intersection. Northwest corner of Valley Street and Terry Avenue North The contractor set up a work area on the northwest corner of Valley Street and Terry Avenue North in fall 2002. To enable construction, intermittent short-term closures may be necessary for one or two of the westbound lanes on Valley Street. Flaggers will help with traffic flow, and excavation and tunneling will cause truck traffic. The contractor will restore the area in early 2004. Most construction affecting traffic flow on Valley Street will take place at night, between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. Nighttime work will continue through June 2003. The work area at this location is necessary to build tunnels that begin and end here. After tunneling is finished, the contractor will build an underground structure at the intersection of the two tunnels. Valley Street between Fairview Avenue North and Minor Avenue North Construction at this location will run from June 2003 to early 2004. One block of Valley Street, between Fairview and Minor avenues north, will be closed to traffic during construction. King County does not expect construction to affect traffic flow on Fairview Avenue. The contractor will dig a shaft here to be a receiving pit for a tunnel-boring machine. The entire Denny Way CSO project includes the following: construction of a large-diameter CSO storage tunnel under Mercer Street; wastewater pipelines in Myrtle Edwards Park; outfalls in Elliott Bay; wastewater pipelines in the south Lake Union area; and a CSO control and treatment facility on Elliott Avenue West. Construction began in June 2000 and will end in 2004. For more information, call Yvonne Kraus, community outreach coordinator, at (206) 269-0229, ext.12, or check the Denny Way project Web site. King County's Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and the environment by serving 18 cities, 15 sewer districts and more than 1.4 million residents in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. Related Information Wastewater Treatment Division Facts at a glance about our wastewater system News Releases

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