City hosts open house on traffic signal project

SANDPOINT — To address community questions about an upcoming traffic signal project at Pine Street and Fifth Avenue, the city will be hosting an open house Thursday, Feb. 22. 

This “drop-in” style event will offer opportunities for residents to ask city staff questions about the project’s implementation. 

The final design was recently completed, aiming to improve traffic flow and connectivity within the community, city officials said in a press release. 

This project will convert Pine Street to two-way travel between Fifth and Fourth avenues, establishing an east-west connection from U.S. 95 to U.S. 2. As part of the project, the traffic signal currently located at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Church Street will be relocated back to the intersection of Fifth and Pine. That intersection will become a full-access, signalized intersection. Conversely, Fifth and Church will convert from a signaled intersection to a side-street, stop-controlled intersection.

Additionally, intersections at Euclid Avenue and U.S. 2 and Sixth Avenue and U.S. 2 will restrict left-turn movements, allowing only right-turn in and right-turn out movements. This adjustment aims to improve safety at these key junctions, city officials said.

In 2015, Sandpoint and the Idaho Transportation Department collaboratively agreed to the reconfiguration of U.S. 2 along Fifth Avenue and the state transferred ownership of First Avenue, and Cedar, Pine, and Superior streets to Sandpoint. Subsequently, Fifth Avenue was reconfigured to two-way travel between Cedar and Pine streets and the traffic signal at Fifth and Pine was moved to where it is today. 

“Community feedback has played a pivotal role in shaping this project, with concerns about cut-through traffic in south Sandpoint, signal timing on Church Street at Fifth Avenue, and the one-way section of Pine Street between Fourth and Fifth avenues being addressed,” city officials said. 

The event will take place at City Hall Council chambers, 1123 Lake St., from 1 to 2 p.m. and from 5 to 7 p.m.