The second of three phases of the North 1st Street Revitalization Project is expected to begin Monday, April 5th.
Phase 2 includes the section of North 1st Street from N Street to J Street. At least one lane of traffic in each direction will be open most of the time during work on Phase 2. Traffic may be interrupted completely from time to time, but construction crews will make every effort to maintain at least one lane of traffic both northbound and southbound throughout the project area as much as possible.
The North 1st Street Revitalization Project is intended to improve safety for drivers and pedestrians and increase the economic development potential of the North 1st Street corridor, one of the main entrances to the city.
Click the following link to scroll through a story map created by City of Yakima Information Technology Services showing all three phases of the project – https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/5adf75c8a5ba4b9bad67af6dc08defc0
Total Site Services of Richland is the general contractor for Phase 2. The cost for Phase 2 is about $2.6 million, $665,000 below the engineer’s estimate of the project. Phase 2 will be paid for through a combination of water and stormwater funds, as well as Transportation Benefit District (TBD) funds from a $20 annual car tab fee adopted by the Yakima City Council during its 2018 budget process.
It is anticipated that work on Phase 2 will be complete during the fourth quarter of 2021.
Phase 1 of the North 1st Street Revitalization Project was completed in December 2019. It included improvements between Highway 12 to the north and N Street to the south. It cost about $3.3 million and funded mostly with federal and state funds.
The timeframe for Phase 3, which would provide improvements from J Street to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, is dependent on funding. The City continues to seek state and federal funds for Phase 3, which has an estimated cost of $12 million.
Regular updates on the progress of the North 1st Street Revitalization Project will be provided through the City’s various communications platforms including the City website, City social media sites, news releases and Y-PAC programming.