Briefing No. 30
Pioneer Way Reconstruction Project

September 16, 2011

Good morning,

Over the past week and into next week, the vast majority of the hard surfaces (asphalt and concrete) will have been placed over the full length of the project with the obvious exception of the archaeology block between Ireland and Ilwaco Streets. The unpaved street sections east of Dock, the asphalt patches on Dock between Pioneer and Bayshore, and the City Beach Street intersection will all be paved on Monday night starting about 6 pm. Final paving and striping is tentatively scheduled for the week of September 26.

The State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP) convened a meeting yesterday with Tribal and City officials to discuss how to proceed with the archaeological work on Pioneer Way between Ireland and Ilwaco. In a very productive meeting, it was agreed that the archaeologists can move ahead to remove approximately the top 10” of dirt by hand in the primary discovery area where asphalt will eventually be placed. Ten inches is the depth needed to actually build the street. All human remains and cultural artifacts encountered within this 10” layer will be removed and eventually reburied along with the resources recovered earlier.

Once the south lane excavation is complete, Strider will construct the street to allow traffic to begin using this lane. Archaeological work will then move to the northern half of the street to again remove the top 10” in the parking space area using the same artifact recovery protocol. Once the north side work is complete, all barriers will come down and Strider will complete construction of this block. All of this work is subject to a revised permit from DAHP which should be issued by the end of next week. By that time, we should also have a good estimate of how long the archaeological work will take and when the street work can be wrapped up. We will supply this information when we receive it.

Construction Work

□ Phase 1 - The landscaping subcontractor completed topsoil application within several more planter islands near Dock Street. The concrete subcontractor completed filling the sidewalks gaps around the power poles.

□ Phase 1 – Beginning around noon on Monday, Strider will begin removing the damaged surface at City Beach Street. Every effort will be made to preserve one-way traffic through this area but delays are likely. This intersection will be paved on Monday night.

□ Phase 2 – Sidewalks were completed last week between Dock and Ireland and between Ilwaco and Midway and work is underway to cut the decorative grid pattern within these areas.

□ Phase 2 – Work began last week to prepare the street base between Dock and Ireland and between Ilwaco and Midway in anticipation of paving on Monday night, September 19.

□ Phase 2 – Irrigation and electrical work kept pace with the sidewalk installation, including on the north side of the archaeological enclosure.

□ Phases 1 and 2 – Strider will again be working tomorrow (Saturday) to complete preparations for the Monday night paving. .

□ Phases 1 and 2 - Starting next week and continuing for the two weeks following, work will concentrate on installing the “amenities,” including handrails, landscaping, streetlights, planters, benches, bike racks, tree grates, permanent signs and streetside restoration.

The Archaeological Work

□ City officials and the City’s consulting archaeological firm, Northwest Archaeological Associates (NWAA), met with State and Tribal officials on September 15 to determine how to handle the additional human remains that were discovered within several of the test pits. See above for the results of this meeting.

□ Archaeological monitoring is continuing whenever Strider or one of their subcontractors performs any excavation work.

Question of the Week

Q. Why have the contractors paved the sidewalks right up to the power poles? Aren’t these poles going to be pulled out when the wires come down?

A. Yes, the poles will be pulled out once all the customers on the street are connected to the new underground system. However, in all likelihood, it will be at least several months before everyone is hooked up and it was felt that paving the sidewalk around each pole would be safer and provide a cleaner all-weather surface. Once the time arrives to remove the poles, the concrete will be sawcut on the incised grid lines, the poles will be removed and the square then patched to match the rest of the sidewalk.

Scheduled Gatherings/Events

AM TUESDAY COFFEES Every Tuesday morning – 9:00 to 10:00 am
Pioneer Way Information and Construction Office
Have a cup and pastry, hear what’s on the schedule for that week

Key City Contact People

These are your go-to City staff for issues connected to the construction project:

Larry Cort
Project Manager
360 914 7107
lcort@oakharbor.org

Joe Stowell
Project Engineer
360 279-4520
jstowell@oakharbor.org

Rhonda Severns
City Utilities
360 914-7256
rhseverns@oakharbor.org

Other Places for Information

Pioneer Way Web Page - http://www.oakharbor.org/page.cfm?pageId=379

Pioneer Way Project Blog - http://pioneerway.blogspot.com/