Orcas Road project reaches the preliminary design phase

Published 10:07 am Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Safety, biking and preserving the rural nature of the island were all issues discussed at the San Juan County Public Work’s recent open house at the fire station on March 3.

This was the second public meeting held to discuss the alternatives being considered to improve safety on Orcas Road between Nordstrom Lane to the north of McNallie Road. The project is scheduled for 2016 or 2017.

Russ Harvey, Public Works operation manager, said the main components for the new road are safety considerations, better approaches from side roads and space for bikes.

According to Shannon Wilbur, project engineer, Public Works is at the end of the preliminary design phase of what the new road will look like, which concluded after islanders voted on four different plans. You can view those options that were not chosen at sanjuanco.com/PW/docs/CurrentBidProjects/Open_House_flyer.pdf. Fifty percent of voters chose the option two – curvilinear.

“We really wanted to improve sight distance, in spots you can’t see enough to make informed decisions,” said Wilbur. “The curves are also banked too much, causing you to slingshot.”

Construction will last about four months in the summer of 2016 or 2017. Wilbur said construction has to occur when the roads are dry.

“I am excited about having the ability to have a bike and pedestrian route,” said Orcas Councilman Rick Hughes at the meeting.

The widening of the road is part of that, but Hughes said he hopes the rural characteristic of the road will not be compromised.

“It’s a big project, and we want the community to be behind it,” he said.

If you have missed the meetings you can send your comments to Wilbur at shannonw@sanjuanco.com.