1. Road improvements to be aired at Open House

Pierce County is inviting citizens to an informational open house regarding roadway improvement plans from the north end of the Fox Island bridge to 70th Avenue Northwest. The 1.04 miles project includes portions of Fox Island Bridge Road, Warren Drive and 32nd Street.

The open house, which will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 29 at the Peninsula Library, 4424 Point Fosdick Drive N.W., is aimed at informing and involving citizens in plans to improve the roadway. Project staff from Public Works and Utilities-Transportation Services, will be present to provide information, answer questions and receive comments.

The proposed improvements include the combination of reconstructing and overlaying the existing two-lane roadway to accommodate a standard rural two-lane arterial with paved shoulders, combination of open ditches and piped conveyance system, and stormwater quality and quantity facilities.

2. The Orchard project’s irrigation system to get power

A Pierce County project aimed at providing affordable housing, vegetables and fruit for low-income families is nearing a milestone.

The Orchard is under construction on an 18-acre site near Roy that was a former illegal junkyard. The project will include six three-bedroom rental homes, a 12-acre orchard and a 2,500-square-foot garden.

The housing project will be owned and managed by the Korean Women’s Association. The orchard will be run by the Emergency Food Network of Pierce County.

An event marking the “Official Power Up” of The Orchard’s irrigation system will be held at 9 a.m. Thursday, June 23. “The Orchard’s trees have been planted, and we are ready to turn on the power for the irrigation system,” said Gary Aden, administrative program manager for the county’s housing program.