First downtown redevelopment project accommodates new traffic capacity to handle increases from 520 bridge tolling

The city of Bothell invites the public to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony that celebrates the completion of the Wayne Curve Project at 10 a.m. June 19 at Red Brick Road Park on 96th Avenue Northeast, just one block south of State Route 522.

Parking at Red Brick Road Park is very limited, and attendees are asked to park at the city of Bothell Dawson Building, 9654 N.E. 182nd St. A shuttle service will be available.

The total cost of the project from acquisition through construction is approximately $22 million. The Wayne Curve Project — completed in December 2011 — was funded by the city of Bothell, Sound Transit, Washington State’s Department of Transportation and the Transportation Improvement Board, the Federal Highway Administration and King County. The project was also a recipient of the Urban Vitality Grant that was awarded through the State Public Works Board.

The prime contractor on this project is Marshbank Construction, and the design of the roadway was developed by KPG.

Through Wayne Curve’s enhancement, the city and its funding partners alleviate some traffic pressure stemming from a 10-percent increase to traffic resulting from the recent addition of tolling on the SR 520 bridge.  Additional lanes for public transit, a sculpted retaining wall and pedestrians and landscape improvements were also constructed.

The project also includes enhancements to a historic landmark, the Red Brick Highway, and added a notable city gateway marker, ornate fencing and light standards, as well as a metal sculpture, which is one of the first installments under the city’s new Percent for the Arts program.

Acting as a subtle gateway element at the city’s downtown entrance, the art piece, titled “Current,” is symbolic of the adjacent Sammamish River and the endless flow that occurs from the Cascade Mountains to Puget Sound.   Residents, visitors and passersby use Wayne Curve as a means to reach the city of Bothell and beyond. The artist team was a collaboration between Sue Jensen and Phuong Nguyen, two very talented artists/landscape architects working for KPG.

Jensen also updated the 1994 Red Brick Road Park concept plan to incorporate improvements included in the Wayne Curve project. The Red Brick Road is the last exposed section of the old Bothell Lake Forest Highway, finished in 1913. Park enhancements include an accessible connection to the Burke Gilman Trail, a new entrance to the park and the parking lot shared with Wayne Golf Course and King County, barriers and new landscaping to better protect and define the brick road, a new picnic table and a temporarily reinstalled interpretive sign (to be relocated). Also included in the updated plan and slated for installation in 2012 are a historic vehicle sculpture funded by the Bothell Arts Council and an additional panel for the back side of the interpretive sign, and brick bases for that sign and the new park entry sign funded by the Bothell Landmark Preservation Board.

This roadway project is the first public project completed in the city’s downtown revitalization, which is the largest municipally led in the state.  In April 2010, the city of Bothell kicked-off the Downtown Revitalization plan with a groundbreaking for this project and Crossroads, a realignment of SR 522 at SR 527.  In total, the city has planned investments of $150 million in public infrastructure improvements. Crossroads is set to begin construction later this month.