Perhaps the city’s public works-engineering service division’s most visible work in 2024 was the demolition of the Auburn Avenue Theater and the completion of a new pedestrian bridge across the White River.

But it also added 2.5 lane miles of pavement, installed 5,200 linear feet of sidewalk, upgraded 63 curb ramps to meet ADA specifications, installed 21 new streetlights, and laid 7,100 linear feet of storm pipe, 700 linear feet of sewer pipe, and 5,100 linear feet of water main.

According to what senior project engineers Matt Larson and Jeffrey Bender told the Auburn City Council at its twice-monthly study session on Monday, Jan. 27, the year 2025 is shaping up to be just as busy as the last.

The engineers came to City Hall to update city leaders about the overall status of the city’s capital projects. As of that day, they said, 28 of the projects under their wings were in design, and 18 were under construction, summing to $151 million in total costs spread in budget cycles over several years.

Here is a small selection of what’s either under construction, or will be soon.

The Auburn Downtown Theater project, which calls for construction of a 290-300 seat performing arts theater on the site of the former Auburn Avenue Theater. The estimated cost is $12 million, including state grant funds.

“We are complete with the preliminary schematic design of the theater, [which] basically outlines the general footprint of the building, some general room layouts, sizing,” said Larson, who is the manager of the project. The city is currently under contract negotiations to start the final design of that, he said.

“We anticipate designing and permitting this year, with a tentative ground breaking in the first quarter of 2026. [We are] hoping for a tentative ribbon cutting to open up the doors in the fourth quarter of 2026,” Larson said.

A related project will raze the building that now houses the Hills of Comics store at 125 E. Main Street to prepare for construction of the downtown park adjacent to the future theater, in fact, part of that overall project.

Patching and replacing roadway surface pavement on C Street Southwest between West Main and the GSA signal, completing improvements to the water main, and upgrades to the storm collection and sanitary sewer utilities in that corridor.

“This project was anticipated to start construction in February of this year,” Bender said, “but we were just informed by the contractor that some materials that we need, mainly the water main, aren’t readily available. They are working to get those materials ordered, and we now anticipate that we’ll start construction in May.”

Regional Growth Center access work will encompass the 3rd Street Northeast to 4th Street Northeast corridor between Auburn Avenue and Auburn Way North, making non-motorized access improvements, installing traffic signals and street lighting, and making improvements to stormwater facilities within the project area.

Phase 1 of improvements to the city’s Public Works Maintenance and Operations facility on C Street Southeast will see the addition of six vehicle maintenance bays for servicing small-fleet vehicles, and construction of two restrooms and office space.

The Garden Avenue Realignment project will create a new east-west connection between 102nd Avenue SE (Garden Avenue) and 104th Avenue Southeast by replacing the existing Garden Avenue connection to 8th Street Northeast with a permanent cul-de-sac. Utility improvements will include storm drainage the engineers said are needed to support the roadway surface and new water and sewer mains

Auburn Way South improvements from Hemlock to Poplar will widen the roadway to create a five-lane section by adding two general purpose lanes in each direction and a center, two-way, left-turn lane.

The R Street Southeast preservation project from 33rd Street Southeast to 37th Street Southeast will provide roadway improvements, among them grinding and overlaying the roadway pavement, adding new street lighting, a non-motorized multi-use path and making improvements to associated underground utilities.

Construction work on the above project, however, has been suspended because of materials that take a long time to procure. The city anticipates work will resume in March 2025, although the contractor may be on site periodically until then to perform minor work activities.

City-safety pedestrian crossing enhancements call for the installation of railroad flashing beacons on R Street Southeast to the north of 37th Street Southeast; at M and 33rd streets Southeast; at the intersection of Southeast 304th Street and 116th Avenue, and; at the intersection of S. 296th Street and 57th Place South.

A neighborhood traffic-calming project will implement measures to improve safety for all road users by reducing vehicle speed and discouraging cut-through vehicle traffic at the following: B Street South between 13th and 16th street Southeast; F Street Southeast; G Street Southeast; H Street Southeast; J Street Southeast; and K Street Southeast between 12th and 21st streets Southeast.

Intersection improvements at the 10th Street/A Street Northwest will include a new traffic signal to replace the existing stop control on the 10th Street Northwest approach.

A project at D and 23rd streets Southeast will eliminate localized flooding and make better use of available capacity in the 21st Street Southeast regional infiltration storm pond by extending and connecting existing storm drainage infrastructure in the area south of 21st Street Southeast, at D Street Southeast, and at K Street Southeast.