Road construction, census and more ...

     Ten years in the planning stages, road construction on Washington Street North between Addison and Filer Avenues is underway

      When it's completed, the construction will tie together widened sections of roadway near the intersections at Addison and Filer Avenues. The widened section will include a storm water drainage system, center median with left turn bays, and new sidewalk. Construction is expected to be complete by mid-June.

     If you’re driving on Washington Street North between Heyburn and Shoup avenues during the next couple of weeks, expect only one lane in each direction instead of two in each direction. Workers will be building a new irrigation structure that crosses under Washington, and they will also be building a new underground storm-drain system.

     Gordon Paving of Twin Falls is the contractor for the $1.7 million project sponsored by the city of Twin Falls. The federally-funded project is administered by ITD.

     Also, according to the Idaho Transportation Department, installation of a stoplight on Washington Street South at the Orchard Drive intersection is likely to begin within the next two weeks. No changes are in the works for the road configuration there, however.

     By early spring, construction crews will be tearing into Falls Avenue West as well as Washington Street North. It’ll seem chaotic, but planners intend to keep at least one lane open on both streets at all times. Plans in that area of town also call for the intersection of Filer Avenue and Washington Street North to remain open throughout the projects, giving drivers an unrestricted route in that area of town.

     Here’s a rundown of the work scheduled for Falls Avenue West:

• In early March, you’ll encounter the first phase of major road construction on Falls West as crews install a 12-inch water line on the mile-long stretch of that road and another quarter mile on Grandview Drive. This water line will allow the city to fulfill its promise to provide plenty of water for the new hospital.
• The final and probably most challenging phase of work on Falls Avenue West will begin when the actual widening from two to three lanes begins. City officials expect to have that completed by October, 2010.

     The Falls Avenue West work is the largest roadwork project to ever take place in Twin Falls that is funded entirely with city taxpayer funds and run by the city’s engineering and streets departments.

     Work on these two streets going on at the same time admittedly will temporarily change the way you drive through the area during this coming spring, summer and fall. Depending on where exactly the work is occurring, you will need to plan for a few more minutes for your commute. Nonetheless, when the work is completed, driving on the northwest side of town will be a dream as you’re cruising on the multiple smooth, widened lanes planned for the area.

 Stand up and be counted: Why YOU Matter  

Have you ever wondered

• How businesses determine where to locate;
• How it’s decided the amount of federal money Idaho gets for road construction and maintenance;
• Where researchers and the media folks get numbers and statistics for reports;
• How the government develops emergency service plans;
• What goes into determining the amount of money Idaho schools get from the federal government?

      The information to make these decisions comes from U.S. Census Bureau, which gathers statistics about the U.S. population. This data helps both private industry and government entities make plans, policies and budgets that affect every single one of us.

     This year of 2010 signals that it’s time again for all residents to be counted in the U.S. Census. The key phrase is “all residents.” Citizen or not, it is to your advantage to be counted. This mandate has been in the U.S. Constitution since the nation’s founding. We here in Twin Falls, Idaho have everything to gain when we get our forms in the mail this month by taking 10 minutes to fill them out -- and quite a lot to lose if we don’t.

     Accurate census numbers help determine Idaho’s portion of some $435 billion each year in federal  funds that will come back to the state. The Census Bureau figures that amounts to $1,400 per year per person who is counted in Idaho.

     The good news is that compliance with the census is completely nonthreatening. It is written in the constitution that no other government agencies or officials can have access to individual data. Every Census Bureau worker takes an oath for life to protect the confidentiality of individual census responses.

     Another piece of good news is the 2010 census form is shorter than it has been in decades. You give only your name, sex, age, birth date, nationality, number and relationships of people in the household.

‘Tis not quite the season …

… For full-time street sweeping, says Streets Superintendent Dean Littler. As the winter season winds down, it’s very apparent the usual dirt and sand of winter has accumulated .

But bad weather still limits street workers’ ability to clean up winter debris on a daily basis. Whenever it is raining, snowing or below freezing, it’s pointless to take the sweeper trucks out. Nonetheless, when the weather is clear, Littler says the sweeper brigade will be out in full force.

The city owns four sweepers and two flush trucks. As a rule, two sweeper trucks and one flush truck work together to clean each street. The workers start out cleaning the main streets in town and then spread out to the side streets and subdivisions.