Third Week of August 2011

The crews are doing a lot of small (relatively speaking) jobs this week. Other than the roundabouts, the sound/retaining walls, and a couple of storm lines, most of the major work has been completed!  Crews are busy moving about finishing up the smaller details including the fencing, irrigation, plants, topsoil, signs. 


At the roundabouts:
At Brassfield the crews are busy forming and pouring concrete for curbs, and at Boulevard the crews have paved as much as possible before moving onto some curbs.  Once the curbs are installed the crews can go back to paving the rest of the roundabout.


Although some people are uncomfortable with roundabouts, they have been shown to help improve the flow of traffic in many cases, and his is the hope with Yelm Highway. For many years, it has been a nightmare for people to try to make left turns during peak times or to escape the side streets. By navigating the roundabouts, people will be able to make stop-free right turns thereby no longer holding up traffic behind them. For good information on how to navigate a roundabout, please visit The WSDOT roundabout information page .

Here are a couple of aerial views of our new roundabouts for you to either drool over or to print out and throw darts at.

BOULEVARD © Aerial Images NW

BRASSFIELD ©Aerial Images NW

In addition, we have these shots of the crew paving from ground level.

Aerial photos provided by Aerial Images NW.

Paving Schedule Update - Boulevard Intersection

Paving Schedule Update - Boulevard Intersection

 

Signal demolition is scheduled for tomorrow, Friday, August 12th.

Conversion to roundabout - concurrent with the signal demolition should be done on Friday.

Paving  is rescheduled for Monday the 15th and Tuesday the 16th.

 

 

Paving has been delayed and will take place on Monday, August 15th and Tuesday the 16th.  Since the roads will not need to be maintained for paving, the contractor will not need to work over the weekend.  The delay also effects the demolition of the Boulevard signals, pushing it forward to tomorrow, Friday the 12th.

 

Stormwater

 

Crews have once again begun working on the stormwater system, east of Boulevard.  This will involve running pipe completely across the road in various locations.  Fortunately, this work is only scheduled for tomorrow, but is likely to pick back up in the future.

 

 

 

As for the rest of the project, the usual construction may be expected:  Sewer connections, sound wall, landscaping.  Some final testing of the sewer manholes will be needed on the east end of the project before the system is used so drivers can expect crews to be working in the center of the roads with minimal impact on traffic.

August 9th, 2011

This Week

 

The usual sewer connections between Boulevard and Rich Rd, sound/retaining wall installation, installation of irrigation, and  preparation of Boulevard-Yelm Hwy intersection, and paving on Friday, possibly Saturday, and paving Monday.  Please expect significant delays at the Boulevard intersection throughout this process.

 

By the end of the week both the Boulevard and Brassfield roundabouts should be able to be used as a roundabout.

 

Please check out the Washington Department of Transportation website if you have any questions concerning roundabouts

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/safety/roundabouts/

 

 

Boulevard Intersection Schedule

 

Today (August 9th):  Preparation for Paving Boulevard.

 

Wednesday August 10th: 

Demolishing Traffic Signal/Conversion to roundabout using cones and signs.  Preparation for Paving Boulevard

 

Thursday August 11th:

Preparation for Paving Boulevard

 

Friday August 12th:

Preparation for Paving Boulevard.  Contractor will be paving the intersection.

 

Saturday August 13th:

If necessary the contractor will be paving on Saturday as well.

 

Monday August 15th:

Paving should be expected on Monday as well.

 

August 4th, 2011

This Week

 

The contractor has been busy finishing up the few remaining sewer lines between Boulevard and Rich Rd. to individual properties along Yelm Highway, and from the sounds of it, will finish up these lines early next week. 

 

The Remote Chemical Feed Station at Indian Summer (feeds odor-eliminating chemicals into the sewage) has been running for a week long test as part of an extensive checklist to avoid sickening odors, and a smooth switch over from the existing system to the new.

 

Concrete crews have been busy constructing and pouring forms at various locations which take a bit more handiwork than normal.  In particular the Brassfield roundabout is coming along quite nicely!  You may ask why the contractor hasn't completely paved the roundabout so it can be utilized?  The reason comes down to placing asphalt against an existing curb results in a much higher quality and durable product, compared to pouring curb next to existing asphalt, which never matches tightly.  Even the smallest of openings leaves room for dirt, weeds, and cracks

 

Next Week

 

The contractor will begin preparing and installing a couple STEP system conversions.  These STEP systems are pumping sewage to higher elevations, and will be transferred to the new pump station.  This will also impact traffic a couple of locations. 

 

The contractor will also begin connecting individual properties to the new sanitary sewer lines once the pump station can begin accepting those flows.  Since the lines were previously installed from the mainline in the center of the road to the connection on individual properties, this will hopefully have a minimum impact to traffic.

 

SK Landscape will be out next week installing the landscaping from Henderson to Brassfield.  This work will take place mostly on the sides of the road, except in the center of the Brassfield Roundabout.  Traffic will probably see a few more impacts.

 

Boulevard Roundabout:  Expect significant traffic delays turning from or on to Boulevard Road as the contractor will be preparing the intersection for paving, and then, of course, paving.  This will also be timed with the demolition of the Boulevard intersection signal on Wednesday, August 10th.  The demolition will be followed by subsequent preparation of the intersection for paving and for curb installation.  This intersection work will likely continue into the week of August 15th.

 

Of course, don't forget the miscellaneous.

Update from the Project Coordinator - Aug 2nd, 2011

The contractor will go back to 5 days a week work, Monday through Friday starting next week.

The contractor will be working on sewer east of Boulevard Road and will be doing some finish work to the end of the sewer main at Rich Road.  The work will include tying in to existing pressurized STEP mains.  The design includes construction of odor control devices, but until they are up and running, there  may be some unpleasant odors.  Also, if you are on a STEP system and your alarm goes off, please contact the City of Olympia immediately.  The City will be sending out an informational letter to each property connected to a STEP system that will be affected by this cut-over.

The conversion of the Boulevard and Yelm Hwy intersection from signalized to a roundabout will begin on Monday, August 8.  It is anticipated to take the entire week to accomplish this and alternate routes are strongly encouraged.  The contractor may even work on Saturday, August 13 on order to finish, depending on how the construction goes through the week. We will keep you updated on this schedule.

The sound/retaining wall work will also continue through the week.

This week - July 25-29th

It will be a slow week on the west half of Yelm Highway, but not so much on the east side as crews continue to install sewer connections to individual properties.  Otherwise work is the usual, pouring miscellaneous curb and sidewalks, sound/retaining wall installation. Pedestrians, please use care when traversing these areas, and follow the guidance of the folks in orange. They are there for your safety too.

Upcoming

However!  Hopefully preparation for paving the Boulevard intersection will begin with the demolition of the intersection on August 8th and grading during that week, followed by (another hopefully) paving on August 15th and 16th. (Disclaimer:Remember that paving is weather, and other condition, dependent.)

The biggest hurdle at the moment is with the Sewer Pump Station, and taking the steps to bring it on-line.  Crews are working with the City of Olympia to switch the existing sewer systems over to the new system without much of a stink.

 Crews will, with detailed care, verify the odor control systems are functioning properly, and then begin switching over the old systems to the new one. 

This Week In Review (and Next Week's Plan)

This Week in Review

Sanitary Sewer

The contractor has run some more sewer lines to individual properties between Boulevard and Rich Rd, as well as finalizing the sanitary sewer manholes between Henderson and Brassfield by applying a coat of light blue epoxy (by Molecular Inc.) to their inside surface.  This was necessary to prevent the concrete from being dissolved due to the natural production of acetic acid  by the organisms which break down the solid waste, but also makes the insides more visible for maintenance.  My does it look pretty!.....until its used that is.

As for the pump station itself, it's ready to be turned on and "all systems are go" as the saying goes.  It's just waiting for the coatings to dry and the final list to be checked off.

Sound/Retaining Wall

So far, most of the walls constructed have been for sound reduction in the surrounding neighborhoods, so here's a photo of one of the retaining walls in action across from Brassfield!

Boulevard Roundabout

You keep hearing about this over and over, (kind of like the Yelm Hwy project) but when is it going to take place?  With those pesky utility conflicts fixed the contractor has just today moved on to installing some remaining stormwater structures at the intersection which they previously couldn't.  When you ask?  Well, in reality the contractor is picking up where it left off, so it looks like a tentative date of August 9th.

Next Week

Most of the major work will be between Boulevard and Rich Rd installing storm water structures, but as always, crews will be installing sidewalk, curb,  and Sound/Retaining walls between Henderson and Boulevard.

There also may be a bit of working going on at the Rich Rd. intersection trying to chase down an old and buried stormwater system and figure out where it goes; no sense in plugging up a perfectly good drainage system!


As an added bonus, here are two photos from last week's paving: