Ritzville prepares for First Avenue construction project

Residents can expect to see crews begin rehabilitation work on First Avenue during the month of May.

The project, designated the First Street Rehabilitation project by the Washington State Transportation Improvement Board (TIB), will consist of rehabilitating segments of First Avenue from Cascade Street to the east city limits.

Council Member Scott Yaeger said the City submitted a grant to TIB in 2016 for project funding. TIB provided 95 percent of the funding for the project while the City paid the 5 percent match requirement.

The City’s engineering consultant Varela and Associates Inc. completed the design work for the project in 2017. The City went out for bid for the project in 2018 and received three proposals.

Of the three companies who issued bids, Central Washington Asphalt’s price of $275,307.50 was the lowest responsive bid for the project.

After Varela reviewed the contract, they forwarded the documents to the City and Mayor Gary Cook signed the contract on April 19.

Yaeger said the project is scheduled to begin within 21 days after Cook signed the contract.

The City’s approximate time for street closure will begin around May 7.

The City is currently working with the Adams County Public Works Department on traffic control measures during construction.

Crews will place detour signs on Main Avenue to reroute traffic to Columbia Street, Bauman Road and Danekas Road.

There will also be detours on Second Avenue between Cascade and Pacific streets, which will direct routes to Chelan Street to access First Avenue.

Yaeger said the scope of work for the project will include grounding existing pavement and utilizing it for as a subbase to mix the cement-treated-base (CTB). Crews will apply eight-and-a-half inches of the CTB to the pavement.

He noted one of the benefits of using CTB is crews are utilizing native soil to mix with the cement instead of having to haul more gravel, which saves crews time and money. He has also used base for county projects in the past.

The base has a cure time of seven days and streets will be closed during the time. Five inches of asphalt will be laid on top of the CTB.

Crews will also conduct culvert replacement and ditching.

Yaeger said the contract requires crews to complete the project by July 6, before harvest season begins.

The rehabilitation is expected to have a 20-year life expectancy, which Yaeger noted is a “conservative estimate.”