Shoreline receives $10.8 million in grants for Aurora Corridor Improvement Project N 192nd to N 205th Streets

From the Office of the City Manager

Last week Shoreline received news that it will receive $10.8 million in grants for the Aurora Corridor Improvement Project from N 192nd to N 205th Streets. With the $10.8 million, Shoreline has reached the minimum funding needed to start construction on the final segment of Aurora.

On November 17, Congress awarded $37.5 million to King County for two Metro Transit RapidRide lines. One of those lines, Line E, will run through Shoreline along Aurora. Of the amount awarded to King County, Shoreline will receive $4.8 million to go towards Aurora Corridor Improvements, specifically the section from N 192nd to N 195th Streets.

On November 18, the Washington State Transportation Improvement Board (TIB) selected projects for the FY 2013 funding cycle. Shoreline was awarded $6 million for the final phase of the Aurora Corridor Improvement Project. The award was part of TIB’s Urban Corridor Program (UCP).

UCP projects are typically larger and must demonstrate cross jurisdictional collaboration. They also recognize the importance of partnerships with the business community.

“We were excited to learn that the Aurora project was the second largest TIB funded project in the state and the highest ranked UCP project in the Puget Sound region,” stated Mayor Keith McGlashan. “We’re proud that approximately 90% of the project funding has come from outside sources and not our local taxpayers.”

The Aurora Corridor Project is the City of Shoreline’s plan to redesign and redevelop the three miles of Aurora Avenue North (State Route 99) that run through Shoreline. Shoreline’s section of Highway 99 carries about 40,000 vehicles and 7,000 bus riders per day, and is a major transit route.

The goal of the project is to improve pedestrian and vehicle safety, pedestrian and disabled access, vehicular capacity, traffic flow, transit speed and reliability, nighttime visibility and safety, storm water quality, economic investment potential and streetscape amenities.

Improving Aurora has been a community goal since the City of Shoreline incorporated in 1995. Shoreline completed the first mile of Aurora Corridor Project, N 145th to N 165th Streets, including the Interurban Trail Pedestrian Bridges in 2007. Construction on the second mile, N 165th to N 185th Streets, is substantially complete and is currently in the final punch list phase. The section between N 185th and N 192nd is under construction with completion scheduled for the first quarter of 2012. The final section of the Aurora project, N 192nd to N 205th Streets, is projected to be complete in 2014.