D to M Street Construction Update

Sound Transit has begun work on the D to M Street Track and Signal Project connecting Sounder trains from Tacoma Dome Station to Lakewood. For the week of Jan. 26 to Feb. 2, you can expect to see on the D-to-M Streets Track and Signal Project:

Utilities
• Qwest will be doing work on East D Street for about a month to transfer underground utilities. This will require traffic control but no closures on East D Street.
• Level 3 Communications company will be working on South C Street between South Tacoma Way and South 25th with a shoulder closure that will not affect traffic.
• Tacoma Power will work during the day on Sunday and will set up some traffic control on East 26th Street.

D-to-M Streets construction work
• Continued work on A Street between South 26th and South 25th for sewer line work. This work involves excavation of A Street and installation of sewer pipe. A Street will reopen in April prior to the temporary closure of Pacific Avenue for 11 months.
• Excavation of a temporary storm retention pond in a Sound Transit-owned lot between A Street and Pacific Avenue. Trucks carrying material will enter and exit from South 26th Street.
• Installation of temporary wood poles for upcoming temporary lighting and signals at the corners of South 24th Street and A Street, South 27th and A Street, and South 27th and Pacific Avenue.
• Continued clearing work between Delin Street and South Tacoma Way. After that work is complete, crews will begin constructing the temporary traffic bypass for a future traffic detour during the temporary closure of Pacific Avenue for 11 months.
• Traffic control will be set up on South 27th Street between Pacific Avenue and A Street for detour street improvements.

Sound Transit Updates: D to M Construction & Open House

D to M Street Construction:
Sound Transit has begun work on the D to M Street Track and Signal Project connecting Sounder trains from Tacoma Dome Station to Lakewood. For the week of Jan. 5 to Jan. 12, 2011, here's what you can expect from the D-to-M Street construction:

• Continued utility relocation work at the corner of A Street and South 26th Street.
• Build street improvements along A Street between South 26th and South 27th streets, which will become a future detour route when Pacific Avenue is temporarily closed.
• Work with Tacoma Water on South 26th Street between East C Street and Pacific Ave.

During this work, traffic control will be set up along A and South 26th streets. Traffic will be maintained in both directions, and the northbound ramp to Interstate 5 will be maintained at all times via South 27th Street. A police officer will continue to monitor the intersection of A Street and South 26th Street.

Please be aware that beginning Jan. 13, A Street between South 26th and South 25th will be temporarily closed for sewer line work.

For more information contact Erin Hunter: 206-370-5511 or erin.hunter@soundtransit.org. If you know others who would benefit from these electronic updates, please invite them to sign up at www.soundtransit.org/subscribe.

Sounder Station Open House:
In January, Sound Transit will host a series of open houses in South Sound communities to present information on the Sounder Station Access Planning Study. The agency is conducting the study to identify potential improvements in the ways commuters access its Sounder stations.

Possible improvements the agency is studying include increased parking, pedestrian sidewalks, crosswalks and bridges, bicycle commute options, and transit facility enhancements.

Open houses will include:
• A description of Sound Transit service areas, transit routes, 2011 budget, and the Sound Transit 2 program
• Objectives of and timeline for the Sounder Station Access Planning Study
• Overview of existing station access issues and discussion of potential solutions
• Informal Q & A and public comment

Tacoma Open House - Tuesday, Jan. 18, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.
University of Washington -Tacoma
Jane Russell Commons
1918 Pacific Avenue

For a complete list of open house dates and locations visit the Sound Transit website.

Save Our Buses Campaign Kickoff – Thursday

Pierce Transit is in trouble and needs your help! Like many other transit agencies in Washington, Pierce Transit is facing a large budget deficit because of the economic downturn. Despite service cuts, staff layoffs and delaying or eliminating capital projects, Pierce Transit will be forced to cut service nearly 35% to close their budget gap unless they can raise new revenue.

These cuts will have a dramatic impact on downtown Tacoma. Approximately 8,000 people ride the bus into downtown each day. Fifty-percent of those trips rely on transit to get to work. Thirty-five percent service cuts to downtown mean some downtown routes are eliminated, buses come less often and weekend service is slashed. This is unacceptable for our downtown.

You can help by spreading the word, donating to the campaign and coming to the Save Our Buses Campaign Kickoff

WHEN: Thursday, Jan 6th 6pm-7:30pm
WHERE:The Hub Events Space, 203 Tacoma Ave S., Tacoma
RSVP: info@approveprop1.com or 253-732-9434

For more information about the February 8th 2011 election and Proposition 1, Save Our Buses go to http://www.approveprop1.com/

Downtown: On the Go! & Stadium High School Receive Grant for Student Bike Club

Downtown: On the Go! and Stadium High School have received a $4000 grant from the City of Tacoma's Office of Sustainability to create a student Bike Club that will engage youth in sustainable transportation options and healthy lifestyles.

The goal of the Club is to provide support to students already biking to school and encouragement and education for those students that would like to bike to school. SHS students biking on city streets and through neighborhoods sends a powerful message about bicycling as an important mode of transportation in Tacoma. More generally, the bike club is an effort to expose youth to sustainable transportation options and healthy lifestyle choices, with hopes of infusing these into Tacoma's youth culture.

ABOUT THE CITY OF TACOMA SUSTAINABILITY GRANTS

In this round, the City of Tacoma’s Office of Sustainability has awarded more than $50,000 in grants to 17 schools and nonprofit organizations for projects that help the community reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The awards range from $800 to $5,000 and focus on projects related to food composting, school and community gardens, recycling, reducing energy consumption, efficient transportation and tree planting.

These awards, evaluated and chosen by the Sustainable Tacoma Commission, are the first sustainability grants awarded by the city. The grant program was established to encourage schools and nonprofit organizations to develop creative and educational ways to help Tacoma reach its Climate Action Plan goals. The Commission evaluated 37 applications with requests totaling more than $150,000 in funding.

Downtown to get Grocery Store

Kress IGA in Seattle

Can it be true? We’ve hoped and pleaded and prayed for years for a grocer to invest in downtown Tacoma. If all goes as planned our dreams may come true.
Dan Putnam a partner in downtown’s newest development, Pacific Plaza told The News Tribune this morning he has an agreement with the Meyers Group. The Group owns and operates four small grocery stores in Washington and plans a store similar in size to Kress IGA at the Pike Place Market in Seattle.

Read the details on TNT website.