Council hears briefing on Ash Street pilot and Dow contract amendment

City staff on Monday described a proposed pilot project for Ash Street that would narrow a one-mile stretch and gather data to guide construction and small-works procurement.

John Snyder briefed the Spokane City Council on a contract amendment with Dow that would produce bid-ready striping plans for North Ash Street between Francis and Wellesley, including narrowing the travelway to two 11-foot lanes with parking lanes on both sides. Snyder said the design would include adjusted striping to daylight crosswalks to accommodate Spokane Transit Authority stops and supplementary signage.

“The consultant shall develop bid ready striping plans for Ash Street pilot project from Francis to Wellesley,” Snyder said, summarizing the contract language staff proposed. He said the consultant would also develop a cost estimate for a small-works roster project and that staff would collect 48-hour tube counts to feed into the pilot analysis, with a separate vendor procurement supplying traffic-count results to the consultant team.

Council members asked clarifying questions and expressed appreciation for the revisions. A council member thanked staff for working on the adjustment to the design; no technical objections were raised.

The briefing was presented as a final-agenda item so the council could consider suspending the rules and act on the contract amendment during the evening meeting. The council moved forward with related procedural motions to enable action on the amended contract at tonight’s final agenda.

The council recessed and will consider final action on the agenda items at its 6 p.m. meeting.