SEQUIM –– The Jamestown S’Klallam tribe has adopted a pair of city streets, saying they are crucial to tribal members accessing services in Sequim.
The tribe, headquartered in Blyn, received unanimous approval from the City Council of its request to add Washington Street and Fifth Avenue to the tribe’s transportation plan.
“Those are a couple streets here in Sequim they feel are socially and economically important for tribal members,” City Engineer David Garlington told the council Monday night.
The tribe’s Jamestown Family Health Clinic is at 808 N. Fifth Ave.
Funding opportunities
Although no projects are immediately eyed, Garlington said the tribe has access to funding sources the city does not.
“This will be a good thing for both the tribe and the city to have additional funding opportunities for these streets,” he said.
The City Council would be able to approve or deny improvement plans if they are proposed by the tribe.
Tribal officials did not immediately return phone calls for comment Wednesday.
The listing includes Fifth Avenue from Hendrickson Road to U.S. Highway 101, Garlington said, and both the east and west sections of Washington Street.
Simdars Road
“Washington all the way to Simdars?” Councilwoman Laura Dubois asked.
City officials have long called for an on-ramp for westbound traffic and an off-ramp for eastbound at the Highway 101 interchange at Simdars Road.
Traffic that exits Highway 101 from the east currently has to drive into downtown Sequim to get back on the highway. Westbound traffic has to use the Sequim Avenue on-ramp to access the highway.
While Garlington said the tribe didn’t mention the interchange as an improvement, he said tribal involvement could lead to more funding for it.
“Who knows where this might go?” he said.
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Joe Smillie can be reached at 360-681-2390, ext. 5052, or at jsmillie@peninsuladailynews.com.
