MOSES LAKE — Driving through Moses Lake is going to get a lot more interesting starting Monday as the city begins several weeks of sewer work at the intersection of Pioneer Way, Wheeler Road and Fifth Avenue.
According to a posting on the city’s website, work crews will begin the first phase of work by rerouting traffic on Pioneer Drive on Monday, March 14, to replace a broken sewer line under Pioneer just north of the intersection near the city library.
“That’s a necessary sewer repair,” said Mark Beaulieu, a city design engineer.
Beaulieu said the sewer replacement work itself should last about a week, followed by additional touches to the intersection.
City crews will then begin phase two of the work, which will involve closing a portion of the northbound lanes of Pioneer Way and E. Fifth Avenue — the short stretch of street between Pioneer and Wheeler that creates the five-sided intersection — as well as tiny portion of street connecting the intersection of 5th Avenue East and Elder Street with Pioneer Way.
Northbound traffic on Pioneer will be detoured around the closures, which are expected to last four or five weeks, Beaulieu said, while city crews replace an older sewer line and redo the line’s connection with the sewer underneath Pioneer Way.
“It’s over 50 years old and it’s difficult to maintain,” Beaulieu said.
The work at Pioneer and Wheeler is part of a larger set of sewer improvement projects across the city, Beaulieu said, with work planned at Division Street and 6th Avenue and the city’s central operations facility. Beaulieu said there’s no schedule yet for the work at 6th and Division, which would involve extending the sewer force main.
Total cost for the project is around $437,000, Beaulieu said.
Motorists and residents should expect long delays at along Pioneer Way, Wheeler Road and Fifth Avenue as work begins Monday because of the sewer repairs and street closures and should plan their trips accordingly.
“It’s likely going to be tough getting through this intersection,” Beaulieu said.
Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at cfeatherstone@columbiabaisnherald.com
Source: Google Maps
Construction at the intersection just east of the Moses Lake Public Library at E. 5th Avenue and Pioneer Way will see construction delays beginning the morning of Monday, March 14.