Inland Asphalt Co., of Spokane, has begun work on a $632,000 project in Deer Park involving the reconstruction of H Street from U.S. 395 to Main Street and construction of a new roundabout to replace the intersection of H and Main.

Inland Asphalt will replace about 1,300 feet of H Street and construct new curbs and sidewalks along that stretch, says project manager Al Hughbanks.

The project, designed by the Kennewick office of J-U-B Engineers Inc., of Boise, Idaho, also includes the roundabout with a raised 40-foot central island surrounded by an 18-foot-wide traffic lane, and an 11-foot-wide concrete space, called a truck apron, to allow long trucks to pass through, says Steve Chandler, a design engineer with J-U-B Engineers. The design is similar to a roundabout the city constructed at Crawford Street and Weber Road last year, he says.

Hughbanks says the city of Deer Park decided to place the roundabout just south of the intersection to mitigate its impact on businesses located at the intersection of H and Main. The old intersection will be demolished, H Street will be realigned about 35 feet to the south just east and west of Main to meet the new roundabout, and drainage swales will be built where the short sections of H Street will be taken out.

During the project, which is scheduled for completion in mid-October, flaggers will guide one-way traffic on H Street while crews are working, and two-way traffic will be allowed at other times. The new roundabout will be paved early in the morning to lessen the impact on traffic, Hughbanks says.

A Washington state Transportation Improvement Board grant is funding the project, Chandler says. The city of Deer Park is funding about $300,000 in traffic control expense during the project, he says.