Transportation Projects – First Place – Rebuild 11th Street

A call for safer, more convenient access to restaurants, entertainment and open spaces led to Rebuild 11th Street, which in turn “catalyzed economic development and leveraged significant private investment along 11th Street.” The project included infrastructure improvements which included new sidewalks, more street trees, repaved roadway, replacement of an outdated underground canal structure, replacing stormwater drainage systems, placing powerlines underground and more.

Those improvements implemented 1,765 cubic yards of concrete roadway, 2,170 tons of asphalt, 5,100 feet of bike lanes, the installation of new concrete sidewalks with added amenities on nine block faces, 45 new streetlights, 71 new planted trees and 2,250 feet of upgraded aging water lines among other things.

One of the main challenges faced by the project was creating low-stress street crossings at both Front Street and Myrtle Street. “Each street is five lanes wide and connects to or from Interstate 184, resulting in higher speeds and traffic volumes than seen elsewhere in the downtown core,” project owners stated. New treatments, which have not been used in the Treasure Valley until now, slow turning vehicles and create extra time and space separation between vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.

Thanks to local market surveys to determine current costs of availability and labor, materials and equipment conducted on the part of the contractor, as well as other factors that could affect the cost, the project stayed within budget.

Continuous quality control of Rebuild 11th Street ensured that defects were avoided and improvements could be made wherever possible.