Construction will begin this week on the future Orchard Place Apartment complex in downtown North Bend.
The new complex, built by John Day Homes, will be located along SE Orchard Drive and Cedar Falls Way and includes seven buildings, totaling 41 apartments units. These will be some of the first new multifamily/apartment homes built in North Bend since 1995.
Access to the project site is from SE Orchard Drive. JDH expects to complete infrastructure construction and record the final binding site plan in the spring or early summer of 2018, with building construction anticipated to begin soon after final plan approval.
Per the press release, since construction activities will include a substantial amount of construction machinery, construction noise, and more vehicles, the following safety measures will be provided:
- The City has designated a “Haul Route” for construction machinery and worker vehicles for access: from Exit 32 I-90 traveling along 436th Avenue and onto SE Cedar Falls Way. From SE Cedar Falls Way, construction traffic will travel west through the Cedar Falls Way roundabout and onto SE North Bend Way. From SE North Bend Way construction traffic will turn south onto SE Orchard Drive to the projects construction entrance. The return haul route will be the same. The City will not allow construction access on other roads. Before construction, SE Orchard Drive road / pavement condition will be evaluated. Following construction, the pavement condition will be re-evaluated to determine if construction traffic damaged the pavement. If so, then the pavement will be upgraded to equivalent or better condition.
- Full road closure is not anticipated with this project. Partial lane closures may occur during construction hours.
- The City will employ inspectors on SE Orchard Drive to ensure traffic control measures are being followed and public safety is not being compromised.
- The Grading Permit will state that contractors shall honor allowed work hours, ensure safe street access for the public, and provide general cleanup of the right-of-way each day. North Bend Municipal Code does not allow construction noise from 8:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on weekdays and 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. on Saturdays. No construction noise is allowed on Sundays or holidays including New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day, regardless of the day of week.
According to a city press release, the binding site plan process for the project has three parts, with part 1 including technical analysis, environmental evaluations, preliminary engineering, public notification and comment period, preliminary binding site plan approval, State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) determination, permitting, and final engineering approval.
Part 2 involves clearing/grading, infrastructure construction (sewer, water, storm drainage, dry utilities, roads), and final binding site plan approval. Part 3 involves actual building construction. During these phases, the city stated it provides technical reviews, coordination, permitting, inspections, etc.
Residents living in close proximity to the site were mailed notice of binding site plan application in 2017. Notification was published in the Snoqualmie Valley Record, along with signs posted along the site’s perimeter.
