Work to be done on Avondale - Your Input Needed by 4/30 (Extended to 5/4)

Pilot Project Site Selection Underway

We have been informed by King County that asphalt rubber is currently “off the table” as a re-surfacing option on Avondale because the test patch on 520 has rutting problems that must be studied.  (It may have been a problem in the application due to lack of experience with the product.)  As an alternative, the County has proposed that the money budgeted for the Avondale Pilot Project in 2009 approximately $300K) be used for grinding, which will produce a smoother and quieter surface.  The money in the budget is only enough to do a test section and it will inlclude a noise study, with measurements and feedback from residents.  After doing an evaluation of the road and condition of the panels, the County has selected a couple of possible test locations and seeks our input.

The options include using a new type of grinding called Next Generation which may be 3 decibles quieter than traditional grinding.  The downside of Next Generation is that it costs more than conventional grinding so the test segment will be shorter.  We were told that they cannot do the test on sections of the road which have panels that must be replaced.  Therefore, some of the worst sections of the road are not a candidate for the test.  The locations selected by the County are set forth in the information below prepared by Rick Brater of King County Roads Engineering (which includes an excellent and informative power point presentation).

In a follow-up phone conversation with Rick, he indicated that they are looking forward to an opportunity to study the effectiveness of Next Generation grinding but will go with our preference.  Also, due to the severe budget shortages, there is nothing (so far) in future budgets for grinding or re-surfacing.  The County hopes that grinding may profide sufficient noise mitigation, but if Avondale is eventually re-surfaced, the grinding would prepare the service for paving so it is not a “thow away” (per Linda Doughterty, King County Road Director).  Please feel free to post your comments to the website or submit them to quieteravondale@gmail.com.

Note: We sent this information out via email a couple of days ago as well and have received some comments already.  We will forward all comments to King County for consideration in the final site selection.  Please submit your comments, if desired, as soon as possible, but no later than 4/30/09 5/4/09.

Thank you for your continued involvement in support of Avondale road improvements! It is important as we continue to work for additional grinding and/or re-surfacing, and the funding to accomplish it.

4/20 Email |Information from Rick Brater of King County Roads Engineering

Everyone

In regard to the pilot project for Avondale Road, we have put together some information in the table below and in the attached Power Point document on the different alternatives for grinding a portion of Avondale Road.   As we looked into and learned more about the “Next Generation Grinding” we found out a few things.  First, the Next Generation Grinding costs about twice as much per linier foot as the conventional grinding, and second we are told it will reduce the noise approximately 3 decibles more than the conventional grinding.

In regard to where to do the grinding, we have looked and found three general locations where minimal panel replacement will have to be done.  The potential locations are:

• Between NE 143rd St. and NE 151st Street
• Centered around NE 165th Street
• Between NE 159th St. south to Bear Creed Rd.

Given this information, we have put together seven alternatives.  The alternatives include conventional grinding (Alternatives 1, 4 and 6) and the Next Generation Grinding (Alternatives 2,3,5 and 7).  So the choices are which type of grinding would you like to try and what would be your preferred location to perform the work?  Or rephrasing the question, which alternative would you like to try?

Avondale Road Northeast Grinding Alternatives