US 395 – Hafer Road to Chewelah – Paving & Complete Streets

US 395 from Hafer Road to Chewelah (Sand Canyon Rd) – milepost 202.87 to 207.94 – has been identified as needing the asphalt pavement rehabilitated to preserve the roadway structure and the public investment in highways. This stretch of roadway was last paved in 2009. Once complete, this stretch of roadway will be preserved for years to come.

Previous outreach in Chewelah

In 2022, Move Ahead Washington was passed by the Washington State Legislature, which included a requirement for WSDOT to incorporate principles of Complete Streets into transportation projects with an estimated budget greater than $500,000 and starting design on or after July 1, 2022. To aid in the implementation of this requirement, WSDOT established a Complete Streets process that first screens all programmed projects for Complete Streets applicability, and subsequently provides a planning and conceptual design phase – known as pre-design – and target outcomes for projects that are required to incorporate Complete Streets. More information about the Complete Streets requirement and WSDOT’s implementation process is available on WSDOT’s Complete Streets page.

The Complete Streets screening process found the US 395 Hafer Road to Chewelah paving project to require implementation of the Complete Streets requirement within the City of Chewelah and explore the need of Complete Streets from the southern boundary of Chewelah to the Spokane Tribe’s Mistequa Village development. A pre-design phase was begun to conduct this analysis and identify the preferred Complete Streets implementation, including an analysis of the City of Chewelah’s request to restripe US 395 with a 3-lane cross-section within city limits. The pre-design phase also included engagement with local and regional government agencies and several opportunities for the public to provide input, including the following:

• Community Workshop (August 8, 2023) to identify the community’s walking, biking, and rolling needs and preferences for along and across US 395 in Chewelah.
• Public Open House (October 10, 2023) to receive input on preliminary preferred strategies.
• Farmers Market booth providing project information and receiving input.

The pre-design phase balanced results of the gaps analysis, input from local and regional stakeholders and the community, impacts to existing infrastructure, and available funding to identify the preferred Complete Streets strategies to design and implement. This process identified that the Complete Streets requirement was only applicable to the portion of the project from South Street to Sand Canyon Road. Additionally, a traffic review determined a 3-lane cross-section within the city limits was not necessary and would be in conflict with the Complete Streets requirement. An overview of the selected strategies is available on the “Maps & drawings” tab.