Big Seattle City Light project on the way for Delridge: Mile-long streetlight-system replacement, plus stairway lighting

| Utilities | West Seattle news

(Part of the stretch of Delridge where the upgrading will happen)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Another big city project is headed this way.

We got first word of this while talking with one of the many city department reps who came to West Seattle on Saturday for the mayor-led Find It, Fix It walk in Delridge (WSB coverage here). It isn’t in the area on which the walk focused, but it’s in an area where many people will be affected by the work as well as by its results. Here’s what’s up:

Next year, Seattle City Light plans to replace and upgrade the Delridge Way SW streetlights and their infrastructure between SW Myrtle and SW Henderson. That’s a 1.1-mile-long stretch (see it on this map).

The Delridge Way SW Streetlight Infrastructure Upgrade Project entails much more than changing to LEDs (which won’t happen on other West Seattle arterials until 2017) – SCL says the light installations themselves have issues with wiring, grounding, and even siting/spacing, so the entire streetlight system along that stretch is being redesigned and replaced.

Along with new streetlights along Delridge, the project also will include lighting improvements on the SW Holden stairway between Delridge and 20th SW, the focus of safety concerns after robberies earlier in the year (yes, this is the same stairway where goats did some cleanup work last spring).

And, SCL says, some power-cable work will be done in areas where “injection” repair work failed.

Here’s the city overview of the type of work that’s expected to happen during this project:

City Light contractors will be trenching within the right-of-way. They will work within planting strips whenever possible, but will be demolishing sidewalks in some locations. New sidewalks and curb cuts will be installed as necessary and trenching across streets will be required in some areas. Sections of sidewalk will be closed while work is taking place. Roadways may be redirected for short periods of time when trenching across streets is taking place. Residents will be notified if driveways will be blocked.

SCL says the work is not expected to require or cause power outages.

The full scope of the project is still being planned, with its design not expected to be complete until March of next year, and bidding to follow in April; construction is expected to happen June 2016-January 2017. We’re checking on the estimated cost, as the SCL budget proposal for next year doesn’t list this (or other) specific projects.

AmandaKH October 5, 2015 (1:09 pm)

This is the second City utility project to end at Henderson. The City Does realize that the City ends at Roxbury St. don’t they?
*
First Project to end at Henderson to the consternation of the Denny Triangle Neighborhood.
*
http://www.seattle.gov/util/EnvironmentConservation/Projects/DelridgeNaturalDrainage/index.htm

WSB October 5, 2015 (1:47 pm)

I just went out to drive the entire stretch and the infrastructure is distinctly, visibly different, between exactly those two points. I don’t know the technical terms but basically, on the east side of the street, it’s the stretch with the very tall poles that have three “coil” type protrusions, and on the west side, the streetlights are all on metal poles, while on the west side of Delridge, the streetlights are all on steel/metal poles – north of Myrtle and south of Henderson, they’re on wood utility poles. – TR

yup October 5, 2015 (1:54 pm)

actually the wood utility poles are largely rotted and split in that area. it’s noticeable when out running or walking. dangerously neglected – the poles around houses are really sketchy in places. people must have thought they had no right to request the light poles be replaced if they were ever worried or even noticed it.

WSB October 5, 2015 (2:01 pm)

(a) I’ve added a photo showing the cross-section of infrastructure I mentioned above – the “tall” type of pole (can’t find its technical name so far) on the east side and the steel/metal light pole on the west. (Also re: city limits – remember that SCL serves unincorporated North Highline and even Burien, too, so its jurisdiction stretches a lot further south.)
.
(b) I can’t find a “replace the poles” specific reporting number but I would imagine you could start with the streetlight trouble reporting method: http://www.seattle.gov/light/streetlight – While doing some advance research for this over the weekend, I also noticed an updated section of city website I hadn’t recalled (or known) existed, the “streetlight tracker.” In case it’s of use to anyone: http://www.seattle.gov/light/streetlight/tracker.asp

Jeff October 5, 2015 (1:58 pm)

The very tall poles are subtransmission lines, linking up substations (Delridge and South Duwamish, in this case), and wouldn’t have anything to do with the street lighting. I can’t speak for why there is a cutoff at Henderson, but those poles are almost certainly not related.

Wait October 5, 2015 (6:21 pm)

The tall poles as shown are transmission lines, the short poles usually carry distribution lines. Just to make simple things harder, there can be distribution lines as well at the 25′-30′ level on the transmission lines. poles with distribution lines also carry, telephone, power and any other lines for various services.

A. October 5, 2015 (9:23 pm)

That stairway will be unsafe until they get rid of the Japanese Knotweed that is growing on that hill from Delridge to 20th. It grows so fast that they will need to bring out the herd of goats a few times a year to keep it clear.

Here is a link with more information on this invasive species:

http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/plants/knotweed.shtml

Rod Clark October 6, 2015 (7:34 am)

Another improvement would be to fix or replace the intermittently functioning pedestrian crosswalk buttons at the two Delridge intersections closest to the high school and middle school – Thistle and Kenyon. At both of these intersections, the walk lights sometimes stay red even after students push the buttons on the west side of the street, and so kids start dashing across the street without a walk light. Sometimes that’s not as safe as at could be. People have reported the one at Kenyon to the City since a couple of years ago, and it’s still intermittent.

Tip to the City: Your Web form to report this kind of thing never resulted in any acknowledgement. Even an automated reply would be OK, if it states who received the data and when to expect an e-mail reply from that person confirming that someone is aware of the problem and has a commitment to fixing it.

Fred Johnson October 6, 2015 (8:30 am)

Any word about how well SCL is coordinating with both SDOT & SPU for any other improvements needed for the area?

Rod Clark October 6, 2015 (10:42 am)

To the nameless individuals down there at the City who are going to tell me that this has been correctly categorized as a very low priority:

The main problem that I see is that left turning drivers on Thistle, turning onto Delridge, use the walk light as a clue to the presence or absence of pedestrians on the NW corner, who at some point should appear in their left side peripheral vision, as they enter the intersection. When the pedestrian light stops working, and kids start running across the street during what they think is the appropriate (and now shorter) time window, the turning drivers aren’t expecting them because there’s no warning to the drivers from the walk signal, and there’s also less time for drivers to react because the kids are moving fast.

The pedestrian trafic is heavier on Thistle, and so is the car traffic. So if you don’t have the budget or can’t justify fixing both of these (NW corner Thistle, SW corner Kenyon) within the next few years, then please at least fix Thistle.

WSB October 6, 2015 (10:56 am)

Fred – too soon to say. First question that came to mind for me was whether this was a known problem going back to the Delridge repaving in the area and might have been fixable then, as this will apparently include some road/sidewalk demolition. So it’s on our followup docket.
.
Rod – I don’t know how long ago you filed the online request but was it via the Find It Fix It app? I prefer web to app but there seems anecdotally to be more responses to the latter. Also it might be worth a direct note to Safe Routes to School’s SDOT person Brian Dougherty. I don’t know how much troubleshooting/problem fixing he does versus “projects,” but I would think that area falls within his jurisdiction. brian.dougherty@seattle.gov
.
TR

DH October 7, 2015 (7:42 am)

@Rod Clark. Agreed about the Thistle crosswalk. I live near there and often have to wait a full cycle if I don’t get to the button well before the light changes. I’m a lot more patient than high school youth. That cross walk should just change with the light. It makes sense.

Sorry, comment time is over.