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EDUCATION | Spring for Schools luncheon raises more than $630,000 for kids in Bellevue classrooms [2]
Sports | Bellevue boys blank Issaquah for third Business | Entrepreneurs fight to straight lacrosse state title, post first shutout in keep Bellevue pot store [7] FRIDAY, JUNE 6, 2014 championship game history [12]
Surrey Downs neighbors get light rail surprise BY BRANDON MACZ BELLEVUE REPORTER
Bellevue councilmembers say Sound Transit has been full of surprises lately, and that’s not been a good thing. The latest came during Monday’s public comments, with Betsy Blackstock of the Surrey Downs Community Club alerting the
council to letters received by residents there that parts of their properties may be condemned to further development of an East Main light rail station. Blackstock said these notices were mostly received by residents on 111th Avenue Southeast, in the northeast corner of Surrey Downs. This was a surprise, she said, since these properties never came up during a
TAKING A BITE OUT OF DIABETES
60-percent design review by Sound Transit earlier this year. Blackstock asked the council to uphold its position that no partial property acquisitions occur. Mayor Claudia Balducci, who also serves on the Sound Transit Board, later revealed the agency needs about 5-10 feet of those properties in order to erect a sound wall to mitigate noise from the East Main station. This was
information she received only after inquiring to Sound Transit after hearing about the letters sent to residents on 111th, she said. “This seems to be a pattern where we’re surprised by things,” said Councilmember Jennifer Robertson. Drawing the most contention currently are SEE LIGHT RAIL, 2
Bellevue weighing bus-only lanes BY BRANDON MACZ BELLEVUE REPORTER
Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and defensive tackle Jordan Hill enjoy a bowl of ramen at Hokkaido Ramen Santouka restaurant in Downtown Bellevue on Wednesday. The athletes accepted a $10,000 donation from the chain on behalf of the CR3 Diabetes Association. Wilson lost his father to diabetes in 2010 and Hill’s father currently lives with the disease. DANIEL NASH, Bellevue
Reporter
Transit ridership in Bellevue has increased 144 percent over the past decade, but Deputy Mayor Kevin Wallace found himself Monday still struggling with a master plan that calls for dedicating traffic lanes for buses. The city's transportation commission has spent the past two years developing the transit master plan, a public hearing for which will take place June 26, ahead of a council vote. During an overview of the plan Monday, Wallace repeated concerns about taking away lanes on Bellevue arterials from motorists at peak traffic times to accommodate buses, adding there is already a lack of right of way property the city could use for new lanes. "I have real concerns germinating seeds in a plan like this by putting projects in it that I don't think belong," Wallace said, adding projects in the TMP wouldn't lead
him to oppose the entire master plan. Of the 107 capital projects proposed in the plan's Capital Vision to improve speed and reliability are eight HOV lane projects, including one on Bellevue Way to be constructed by the state Department of Transportation for better commuter connectivity to the South Bellevue Park and Ride, which will later become a light rail station. Mayor Claudia Balducci said the overall goal of the city should be getting the most people and vehicles through a constrained space in the quickest amount of time, which will likely mean changes to Bellevue streets. She added it’s not a matter of prioritizing one mode of transportation over the other. "If it works, all modes should benefit," she said. Councilmember John Stokes said he also wants to make sure enough research has been done, calling plan development a "once in a lifetime opportunity" to ensure SEE BUS LANES, 16
Major paving project coming to I-405 in downtown Bellevue BY BRANDON MACZ BELLEVUE REPORTER
The state Department of Transportation plans to start a two-mile overlay project early next month on all southbound lanes of I-405, from Northup Way to Southeast Eighth Street. The $5.06 million project includes grinding more than an inch of surface and filling it in with new pavement. That stretch of interstate was last paved over 19 years ago, said
Kris Olsen for WSDOT. "It is due for new surface there because it's filled with cracks and new potholes," she said, adding the project improvements should hold for up to 15 years. WSDOT has set June 8 as its tentative date to begin the overlay project, which Olsen said will be restricted to nighttime work and closures, beginning as early as 8 p.m. Sunday to Friday and up to 5 a.m. Saturday work could begin as early as 7 p.m. with a Sunday morning reopening by 7 a.m., she said.
Brandon Macz: 425-453-4602, bmacz@bellevuereporter.com
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The project also includes repaving several ramps along the two-mile construction site, including southbound I-405 to westbound and eastbound State Route 520, and eastbound SR-520 to southbound I-405. There also may be times when the northbound 405 HOV lane is closed for replacing and repairing guardrails, Olsen said. According to WSDOT, around 175,000 vehicles travel this section of I-405 daily.
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