Frequently Asked Questions

Gary Merlino Construction Company (GMCC) is the contractor for this phase of cleanup in the Terminal 117 neighborhood. Patrick Hafferty is GMCC’s Project Manager.

While we cannot give exact durations for construction timeframes at each work zone, we ESTIMATE the following durations:

• Outfall installation = 3 weeks (starting on July 23)
• Zone 1 = 8 weeks (started on July 13)
• Zone 2 = 7 weeks
• Zone 3 = 8 weeks
• Zone 4 = 6 weeks
• Zone 5 = 9 weeks

Landscaping installation is not included in these duration estimates, but plantings are not expected to disrupt traffic flow when they are installed.

You can view a map of the work zones on the T-117 website’s “Streets” page (http://www.t117.com/update1.aspx). The map illustrating the work zones is posted on the left-hand side of the page.

Work will include street and sidewalk demolition followed by reconstruction and plantings.

Demolition activities:

• Asphalt will be broken and removed from the site.
• Utility poles will be braced.
• Excavators will remove contaminated soil.
• Trucks will haul all covered debris, along approved haul routes, to appropriate disposal facilities.

Reconstruction and Plantings activities:

• A new stormwater system will be installed in the excavated zone.
• The excavated areas will be backfilled with clean imported material.
• New curbs, sidewalks and driveways will be constructed, along with slope stabilization along South Donovan Street.
• A landscape irrigation system will be installed in selected locations.
• Trees, shrubs and other vegetation will be placed in planting strips as well as in rain gardens and along the new non-motorized roadway, which will be established on Dallas Ave South in Zone 2. Temporary fences will protect new plantings in the rain gardens.

Excavation and backfilling will be carried out in segments within each work zone. During this time, the segment of the street will be closed to access entirely. Once backfilling is complete, the streets will be open for local access as paving is completed.

In Work Zone 1 for example, excavation will start on Dallas Ave S between 17th Ave S and 16th Ave S. After that section is backfilled and ready for traffic, the contractor will move to the next section of Dallas Ave S between 16th Ave S and just east of 14th Ave S.

Pedestrian access may be restored in sections as they become stabilized. Roadway sections will generally be re-opened to traffic after paving, and access prior to paving completion may be allowed in some situations.

The contractor will place “no parking” signs with 72 hours notice on each section of the work zone. The contractor will be available to work with residents and businesses on specific access needs as they arise.

Work will only occur in one work zone at a time, with exception of the outfall, which will happen concurrently as work in other zones. The outfall work will not impact access to the neighborhood.

Construction will generally take place between 7am-5pm, Mondays through Fridays. The community will be informed if those hours need to change for any reason.

Yes, these maps and information are available on the T-117 website via the link on the left-hand side of this page: http://www.t117.com/update1.aspx.

Residents and businesses in the construction zones will be provided temporary access points to their properties during construction. The contractor will be on site to work with each individual property owner if there is an access question or concern. If you have questions about access, please call the T-117 Information Line at 1-877-999-T117 (8117) or email T117_Streets@seattle.gov.

Residents will need to find alternate street parking in the neighborhood on a temporary basis during construction. “No parking” signs will be placed with 72 hours notice in the specific areas of each zone.

The contractor has protocols in place to allow for regular mail, garbage pickups, emergency vehicle access, deliveries services, etc. during construction. The contractor will work closely with local utilities to ensure that regular services continue.

Residents will be kept informed if mail, garbage, etc. will need to be picked up in a different location for any reason during construction.

If you have questions about utility services or deliveries during construction, please call the T-117 Information Line at 1-877-999-T117 (8117) or email T117_Streets@seattle.gov.

The City has to meet a “no visible dust” requirement during construction. To protect construction workers, residents, as well as local air quality, the contractor will cover loads and use water spray to control dust. The work areas will be monitored for visible dust to verify that the contractor's dust control techniques are adequate.

As construction is currently taking place during a very hot and dry Seattle summer, we have been observing dust, which appears to be coming from both excavation activities as well as placement of clean backfill material. The contractor is visually monitoring for dust and taking action to mitigate dust from all sources. In addition to covering loads and spraying water, the contractor is also frequently sweeping the work zone and using specific construction techniques designed to control dust. Both sweeper truck and water truck are on site to reduce dust within the work zone and adjacent streets.

As part of the cleanup work in Work Zone 2, the City is planning to remove contaminated soils from the southeast end of Dallas Avenue South. When completed, this stretch of Dallas Ave will be a non-motorized pedestrian roadway and will extend along the eastern section of South Donovan Street.

The pedestrian roadway will be an asphalt walking/biking trail that is closed to vehicles.

Trees, shrubs and other vegetation will be placed in rain gardens and in a constructed wetland along the non-motorized pedestrian roadway as well as public artwork.

Design drawings for the entire Terminal T117 cleanup project, including the non-motorized pedestrian roadway, can be viewed on the project website at: http://www.t117.com/documents/streets_yards/OutreachFigures_20140212.pdf.

The contractor coordinates with local emergency services to ensure there is access to all properties in the construction zones at any time during construction.

In the event of an emergency, call 911.

If you have non-emergency questions about access, call the T-117 Information Line at 1-877-999-T117 (8117).

Yes, the median along South Donovan Street will be stabilized and replanted as part of Work Zone 3.

T-117 is designated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an “Early Action Area” for the larger Lower Duwamish Waterway Superfund site. Due to its history as an asphalt-shingle manufacturing facility – Malarkey Asphalt and Duwamish Manufacturing – the T-117 site and the river sediments next to the property are contaminated and require cleanup. Additionally, contaminants were tracked by equipment off the site and into the adjacent neighborhood, causing the need for cleanup in some nearby streets and residential yards.

The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) studies hazardous sites in the state, and assigns these sites with a ranking to estimate the potential threat the site poses if not cleaned up. T-117 is ranked as a “1” which represents the highest level of concern relative to other sites being studied by Ecology.

The City expects to begin street restoration and stormwater improvements in summer 2015.

The City’s outreach team from Veda Environmental will keep the community informed throughout the project via numerous methods: South Park Listserv, mailings, flyers, open house or other community events, and newsletters. The T-117 website will contain frequent updates for the community including construction impacts, street closures and other relevant project information.

Because the City will be removing contaminants from some existing streets in the neighborhood, the City will construct stormwater improvements while the streets are open and being restored, as required by City Stormwater Code.

The City constructed a temporary stormwater system as part of an interim action in 2004, which was implemented to cover/contain PCB-contaminated soil in the right-of-way. This system will be removed as part of the cleanup and replaced with a permanent stormwater collection and treatment system as required by City Stormwater Code.

Information on soil sampling at specific properties within the Terminal 117 neighborhood and testing results from specific yards or adjacent areas are provided in three documents:

• Pre-2010 sampling results and soil removals: Refer to the Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) report and attachments on the T-117 website. Relevant pages on the “Map Folio” link include 2-6 (removal area), 2-31 (pre-removal PCB concentrations), and 2-36 (post-removal concentrations).
• 2010-2012 sampling results and soil removals:
  • For sampling results, refer to the Residential Yards Data Report, (an attachment to the “Residential Yards Removal Action Design Report”, Appendix G) on the T-117 website. Figure 1 shows the additional sampling locations.
  • Residential yard soil with PCBs above the Removal Action level during pre-2010 and 2010-2012 sampling work, (and not addressed under the interim actions noted above), were excavated in 2012. For 2012 removal locations, refer to the Residential Yards Completion Report 2013 on the T-117 website. Figure 1-2 shows properties where the soil was removed.

To make searching these documents easier, type the street address in the “Find” box and click through the arrows to read each finding.

The City will maintain the rain gardens.

You will generally see treated stormwater coming out of the new outfall 18” pipe just south of the Marina. The water will be treated through the new rain gardens and Filterra® tree boxes, which are an Ecology-approved stormwater treatment system encased in a concrete vault. Both systems filter out suspended solids and other pollutants through a soil mixture. Rain gardens treat stormwater by filtration, adsorption and biological processes. Treated stormwater, with very little silt-content, will then flow out of the pipe. However, depending on the size of the storm, there could be both treated and untreated runoff discharged from the outfall.

The outfall pipe will be installed at +5 mean lower low water (MLLW) so it will be exposed much of the time.

The new trees planned for the T-117 neighborhood will be installed with a root barrier to prevent roots from damaging sidewalks.

Please call the T-117 information line any time: 1-877-999-T117 (8117). You can also email the project at T117_Streets@seattle.gov and a team member will respond to you as soon as possible.

The Community Outreach team at Veda Environmental can be reached directly here:
   Nanda Guajardo – nanda@vedaenv.com or 206-910-1377

The Seattle City Light Project Manager can be reached here:
   Mary Mitchener – T117_Streets@seattle.gov or 206-455-8851