Port Orchard advances 60% design for SR 166 (Bay Street) reconstruction, plans 20 mph downtown zone

Consultants and Port Orchard staff presented a 60% design for the SR 166 (Bay Street) reconstruction and the adjoining Bay Street multiuse pathway at the Transportation Committee meeting, and committee members signaled they are comfortable moving the project forward to further coordination with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and federal grant administrators.

The project team said plans will be delivered to the city as a 60% submittal. Consultants described a streetscape package that includes a multiuse pathway integrated with the planned Community Event Center (CEC) and Orchard Plaza, a raised pedestrian crossing at Orchard Plaza, two mountable center medians for traffic calming, combined roadway/pedestrian lighting with treated hardwood facing, and street trees and low-maintenance planting where space allows.

The design team said preliminary coordination with WSDOT supports posting a 20 miles-per-hour speed limit through the downtown Port Orchard corridor as part of the reconstruction. Consultants identified the intersection of Kitsap and SR 166 (near the downtown approach) as the planning-level transition point where the lowered speed zone would begin; final sign locations will be set through WSDOT review.

Why it matters: the SR 166 work is federally funded and is intended to set a streetscape standard for future downtown development while protecting the corridor from flooding by raising grade where…