 Ship Canal Water Quality Project update 12/19/2024
2024 Highlights: Looking back while moving forward
The upper left image shows the Saltwater Streets art inlays in East Ballard. In the upper right, members of the Ship Canal team are gathered to commemorate the reopening of N 35th St. The lower left image shows new street markings for the Burke-Gilman trail. The lower-right image shows the reopened Stone Way N.
With the holiday season upon us we’d like to take this opportunity to pause, reflect, and celebrate all that we’ve accomplished this year. Our crews have been hard at work, rolling up their sleeves and tackling challenges head on to move this project along. We’ve navigated obstacles, found creative solutions, and, most importantly, hit some pretty major milestones along the way!
2024 has been a year of progress, teamwork, and a little bit of fun mixed in. Whether it was overcoming unexpected hurdles or celebrating accomplishments, we’ve shown time and again that together, we can move mountains (or, at least, big pieces of construction equipment!).
In 2024, we:
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Reopened Stone Way N and N 35th St, and N 34th St in Wallingford after extended closures. Thank you so much for your patience during these two big closures!
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Returned the Burke-Gilman Trail to its original configuration and fully re-opened NW 45th St and 11th Ave NW in East Ballard. Thank you especially to the bicycle community for your patience during construction!
- Returned and restored the Ship Canal Trail to its original configuration in Queen Anne.
- Installed 9 of 13 of Vaughn Bell’s Saltwater Streets art fixtures across the project area — which Bell describes as "portals to the Salish Sea" — a reminder that all storm drains end up flowing to Puget Sound and the connection between our built and natural environments in this region.
- Delivered 24 project-wide emails to over 2300 community members (that’s 2300 subscribers like you each time!)
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Kicked off the Ballard Pump Station and Conveyance portions of the project. We made a video so you could learn more! You can also find the video on our project library website under the “Project videos” section.
Please visit our project website to get the most up to date information about the Ship Canal Water Quality Project, a partnership between Seattle Public Utilities and King County Wastewater Treatment Division. Visit our Flickr albums for recent construction photos.
We’ll be back in January with a sneak peek of what’s coming in 2025, especially as construction for the Ballard Pump Station and Ballard Conveyance project kicks into high gear. In the meantime, we wish you all a joyful holiday season and a fantastic New Year ahead!
Ballard
The Ballard Pump Station and Ballard Conveyance contractor continues work along 24th Ave NW, NW 56th St, and 28th Ave NW. Crews are performing utility evaluation in preparation for the start of Ballard Conveyance construction. The utility evaluation work is now scheduled to go through mid-January, with work continuing over the next several weeks.
You should anticipate:
- Parking restrictions along 24th Ave NW, NW 56th St, and 28th Ave NW
- Noise, dust, and vibration typical of a construction site
- Work and equipment will include machines to cut pavement and vacuum trucks for removing dirt
The current holiday schedule for our construction crew is as follows:
- December 24 – Half day
- December 25 – Off
- December 31 – Full day
- January 1 – Off
Please watch for equipment and signs in the area. Travel slowly through active construction areas and follow directions from flaggers and signs.
East Ballard
NW 45th St between 11th Ave NW and 9th Ave NW is open along with the Burke Gilman Trail (BGT) in its original location. Periodic temporary lane closures may still be necessary over the coming month, and flaggers will assist with traffic during those times. Minor restoration work is continuing so crews will still be in the area and there may be occasional one lane closers with flaggers as work wraps up.
Fremont
Crews continue installing equipment inside the shaft and buried utilities at the site. They also continue installing mechanical and electrical systems inside the vault in N 36th St. Crews also began site grading.
Lane restrictions in Leary Way NW will continue through December. The contractor began sidewalk restoration along Leary Way.
Local closures and detours:
- 2nd Ave NW between Leary Way NW and NW Canal St remains closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic until late 2024
- NW Canal St is open to two-way traffic during this closure
- NW 36th St between Leary Way NW and 3rd Ave NW remains closed until late 2024
- Pedestrian detours are in place on Leary Way NW; please follow all detour guidance
You should anticipate:
- Truck traffic on Leary Way NW as trucks bring materials and equipment to and from the site
- Trucks entering and leaving the site
- Fans running during work hours to provide fresh air to crews working in the shaft
- Heavy equipment in the area
- Noise and vibrations typical of a construction site
Regular work hours will be Monday through Friday from 7 am to 6 pm, and some Saturdays from 9 am to 6 pm.
Wallingford
N 35th St is currently open to two-way traffic in both directions with normal street parking. Utility work will resume in mid-January 2025. Once utility work in N 35th St is complete, our contractor will temporarily restore the roadway until permanent restoration can take place when weather permits.
The southern portion of Interlake Ave N continues to be closed for utility installation work, with vehicle access south of N 36th St limited to local traffic only. Road restoration in Interlake Ave N should begin in January. On the west side of Interlake Ave, curb and gutter restoration should begin later this month and sidewalk restoration will begin in early January.
Within the site at the northeast corner of N 35th St and Interlake Ave N, crews continue to install equipment inside the shaft and electrical building, and continue to install utilities throughout the site and build the rock wall along the north and east sides of the site.
The remaining pavement and sidewalk restoration will follow the utility work and will also take several weeks. We will share details about the traffic control for restoration work when available.
You should anticipate:
- Trucks coming in and out of the site
- Paving and heavy equipment in the area
- Vibrations typical of a construction site
- Road and periodic sidewalk closures
Regular work hours will be Monday through Friday, 7 am to 6 pm. Night and weekend work may occur periodically.
Queen Anne
Crews have completed much of the site restoration. Crews are still working on minor installations and finalizing landscaping. The Ship Canal Trail is currently open in its original configuration. There may be localized trail detours in coming months as needed for crews to work. We will keep you updated on the timing of any remaining work.
Local closures and detours:
- Potential localized Ship Canal Trail detour in coming months as needed. Please continue to remain alert when moving through this area
You should anticipate:
- Trucks coming in and out of the site
Regular work hours will be Monday through Friday, from 7 am to 4 pm.
Contact Us
Please email SPU_ShipCanalProject@seattle.gov with questions or comments or call our hotline at (206) 701-0233. You can also find information online at spushipcanal.participate.online.
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