Today officials from Pierce County, The City of Bonney Lake and Newland Communities, developer of the Tehaleh community, celebrated the completion of a $7.7 million extension of 198th Avenue East near Bonney Lake to help ease local traffic.
The .75-mile extension creates a new alternative to accessing Hwy 410 from Tehaleh and nearby neighborhoods, relieving some traffic on South Prairie Road, Angeline Road and Sky Island Drive. The road extension is part of the development agreement with Newland Communities to mitigate traffic from Tehaleh. The 4,700-acre residential and commercial planned community currently has 600 occupied homes and 1,600 residents.
“More and more people are choosing to live in Pierce County for our jobs and quality of life. The 198th Avenue East extension is a good example of public-private partnerships that support economic development,” said Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy.
“Roads and traffic don’t stop at the city limits,” added City of Bonney Lake Mayor Neil Johnson. “As Tehaleh’s nearest neighbor, we’re working closely with Newland and the county to address traffic and maintain the great lifestyle we enjoy on the plateau.”
The 198th Avenue East extension to 120th Street East is the first of a series of Pierce County road projects that will ultimately result in 198th Avenue East becoming a four-lane road from the intersection with 120th Street East South to Tehaleh’s first roundabout at Cascadia Boulevard East. The entire 198th Avenue East project is projected to be completed in late 2018.
Newland has contributed $11.8 million to road projects in Bonney Lake and Pierce County and will spend an additional $11.7 million for traffic mitigation by 2019 for the first phase of Tehaleh.
“We’re building a new community over the next 20 years in one of the fastest-growing areas of the state. With that comes the need for infrastructure improvements,” explained Scott Jones, senior vice president of Newland Communities. “Improved roads benefit Tehaleh residents and also help us attract businesses to our commercial and industrial properties.”
