Public works projects move forward

COLFAX — Two Public Works projects, the Almota Road construction, and the Scales Project, are coming along.

The four-million-dollar Almota Road project to widen and resurface the road has entered Phase 3.

Public Works Director Mark Storey said they hope to finish the project at the end of this week.

The Almota Road project covers the stretch from milepost 5.82 to milepost 7.96 and aims to enhance safety and traffic flow along the critical roadway.

Storey told the commissioners in June that the road was being torn apart to put rock under it, making it better for year-round traffic.

According to past reports, the road was closed for construction on Tuesday, May 30, beginning the closures for eventual finishing.

Almota Road is now expected to be a broader, safer road with no restrictions. Storey had said that the road was one that they had to close down every winter and spring.

Storey also spoke to the Scale Project or Solid Waste Project. “The project is coming along very well,” he said.

They can now operate out of the scale building, Storey said, noting that they can now use one of the new scales.

“We’re still working on the roads,” he said, adding that the second scale won’t be done until late October or early November.

The Solid Waste Project bid was awarded to Magnum Construction out of Clarkston for $1,719,523.64 on Monday, Dec. 5, and concerns the entrance scale for the Whitman County Solid Waste Transfer Site and Landfill on Carothers Road.

The scale was worn out and at the end of its life. The project was started to replace the main scale and add a second scale to handle in and out traffic.