Arlington working on utility, pavement projects

The city of Arlington continues work this summer with utility maintenance, improving pavement conditions and upgrading ADA ramps.

The 2020 utility and pavement preservation projects are happening across the community in areas that need maintenance, largely in the downtown area and in some spots in Smokey Point as well.

"We're going through the neighborhoods and replacing water mains, doing pavement preservation, and doing the pavement to create ADA ramps," said Jim Kelly, public works director with the city of Arlington.

Construction began last month and is scheduled to continue through October.

A number of waterlines are being replaced as the older pipes have been in use for about as long as the city should rely on them.

"All the water mains are asbestos concrete pipes and are at the end of their useful life," said Kelly.

A number of those pipes need to be expanded as more people come into the community and more water needs to be pumped through the pipes.

"We are replacing the old pipes with ductile iron pipes, which have a life expectancy of 80 years," said Kelly.

The city's pipes are also being constructed with materials to help their stability in case of an earthquake.

"The city is also using lock-tight joints to help prevent joint separation in the event of an earthquake," said Kelly. "Those joints are being put on all new pipes."

A number of roads are being repaved. Scheduled repaving of roads prevents them from having to be replaced completely, which is typically much more costly for the city.

While that work is going on the city is also improving the sidewalks to match Americans with Disability Act standards.

"We're upgrading all ADA ramps that we come across," said Kelly. "They will match all existing sidewalk design and be configured to match all ADA requirements."

Many of Arlington's streets were designed several decades ago and the narrow sidewalks and steep hills which can make designing tricky.

"In a historic town, configuring ADA ramps can be challenging," said Kelly. "So we need a unique design for each corner."

The maintenance projects are scheduled to be completed this fall, and city officials are planning for next year as well.

"Our staff is already working on the pavement preservation projects for the next year," said Kelly. He expects those projects, along with other transportation projects, to go out to bid toward the end of the year.

"The 2020 utility and preservation work as well as our recent roundabout construction will cause traffic delays," said Kelly.

"I just ask that drivers be considerate of the workers and drive safely," he said.

More information about the maintenance projects are available at arlingtonwa.gov/652.