The second phase of the city of Spokane’s Martin Luther King Jr. Way extension project is expected to begin this week.

The project, broken into three phases so far, is intended to provide a more efficient route for traffic moving along the south edge of the University District. Starting just east of Division Street, what was west Riverside Avenue was converted into a two-way street and renamed Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 

The $4.6 million first phase of the extension project included extending the street east from Division to Sherman Street, creating a new boulevard with bike lanes, wide sidewalks, an elevated median, and landscaping. Work on that phase, which also included some other intersecting or nearby street improvements, began in February 2011 and was completed in May 2012. MDM Construction Inc. of Hayden, Idaho was the contractor on that phase of the project.

The $3.6 million first segment of the project’s two-part second phase continues where the first phase left off, extending Martin Luther King Jr. Way eastward from Sherman Street to Erie Street. It will include construction of a new asphalt street, utility infrastructure, storm drainage improvements, lighting, and landscaping. Halme Construction Inc. of Davenport, is the contractor for that portion of the project.

Katherine Miller, director of integrated capital management for the city of Spokane, says the project will be somewhat complex due to variations in the area’s soil. 

“There are some places that needed to be filled in with soil, which we then have to let settle before building,” she says. “This first part of the project will be preparation, preloading the soil for stability, and allowing for utility work to take place.” 

Miller says because of the time needed for preparation and utility installation, work on that portion of the project’s second phase likely will continue into next spring. 

The second part of the project’s second phase is set to begin shortly thereafter. It will include extending Martin Luther King Jr. Way farther eastward, starting at Erie Street and continuing to Trent Avenue. The city hasn’t solicited bids yet for that portion of the overall project, but it’s expected to cost up to $3.3 million and to be completed in the summer or fall of next year.

Also included in that final phase of work will be the creation of a shared-use paved trail for cyclists and pedestrians along part of the existing gravel Ben Burr Trail. 

“The Ben Burr Trail will come up from the south and will pick up at the new intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Erie Street, Miller says. It then will continue parallel to Erie, along the south side of the river until it connects with the existing trail, she says.

Miller says the cost of the added section of trail will be factored into the overall cost of the latter phase of construction.