Four months after roadways were closed near the University of Washington Tacoma in order to complete a $2 million public works project, traffic is moving again near South 17th Street and Commerce Street in downtown Tacoma.
For anyone familiar with the area, South 17th Street was cut off between Broadway and South Commerce Street by a small greenspace, forcing cars and pedestrians to head south on Broadway for a half-block, then backtrack a half-block north on Jefferson Avenue, before reconnecting to South 17th Street.
Construction began in January to extend South 17th Street from Broadway to Commerce Street; realign the intersection of Jefferson Avenue, Broadway, and South 17th Street; improve pedestrian amenities; construct a reinforced concrete wall, new sidewalk, bulb-outs, and ADA ramps; remove and replace asphalt and concrete pavements; and add new channelization, crosswalks, street lights, and a raised mid-block crossing. The project also included significant utility work, such as a new storm drain system; a 60-inch diameter storm transmission segment; and a water supply main replacement.
Last week, a construction foreman told the Tacoma Daily Index the area would re-open “within a week or so, depending on the weather.” On Friday morning, detours and roadblocks had been removed, construction equipment was gone, and vehicles were moving through the area.
More information about the project is available online here.
To read the Tacoma Daily Index’s complete and comprehensive coverage of the South 17th Street realignment project, click on the following links:
- Progress continues to realign streets near UW Tacoma (Tacoma Daily Index, April 28, 2015)
- Project under way to realign streets near UW Tacoma (Tacoma Daily Index, Feb. 4, 2015)
- UW Tacoma: City awards $1.8M contract to realign streets near campus (Tacoma Daily Index, Oct. 8, 2014)
- 2 contractors bid on South 17th Street re-alignment project near UW Tacoma (Tacoma Daily Index, Aug. 26, 2014)
- City seeks bids on South 17th Street re-alignment project near UW Tacoma (Tacoma Daily Index, Aug. 5, 2014)
- South 17th Street re-alignment planned near UW Tacoma (Tacoma Daily Index, Dec. 19, 2013)
- Tacoma City Council to discuss District 1 candidate interviews, Jefferson Avenue alignment (Tacoma Daily Index, Dec. 13, 2013)
Streets have re-opened and traffic is moving again along South 17th Street and Jefferson Avenue near the University of Washington campus in downtown Tacoma. The area was closed for approximately four months in order to complete a $2 million street realignment project. (PHOTO BY TODD MATTHEWS)
Streets have re-opened and traffic is moving again along South 17th Street and Jefferson Avenue near the University of Washington campus in downtown Tacoma. The area was closed for approximately four months in order to complete a $2 million street realignment project. (PHOTO BY TODD MATTHEWS)
Streets have re-opened and traffic is moving again along South 17th Street and Jefferson Avenue near the University of Washington campus in downtown Tacoma. The area was closed for approximately four months in order to complete a $2 million street realignment project. (PHOTO BY TODD MATTHEWS)
Streets have re-opened and traffic is moving again along South 17th Street and Jefferson Avenue near the University of Washington campus in downtown Tacoma. The area was closed for approximately four months in order to complete a $2 million street realignment project. (PHOTO BY TODD MATTHEWS)
