Confluence Parkway Project Updated – Restaurant, Bar Will Stay

Plans are moving forward with Phase 1 of the Confluence Parkway Project in Wenatchee. An public update on the project was presented this week during an open house at the city coucil chambers. 

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Roadway improvement will start at the intersection of North Miller Street and Wenatchee Avenue, where there will be modifications to the existing signal lights. 

Wenatchee City Engineer Jake Lewing says the project will not call for the removal of the Denny’s restaurant or The Igloo, bar, which was once being considered. 

"As we continue to develop the concepts for the other phases, we're going to continue to look for ideas that meet the needs, but reduce impacts to those, so at this time there's no impact to those two businesses," said Lewing. 

An earlier concept for the intersection included right-of-way projections that would have led to the demolition of both Denny's and The Igloo. 

The main focus of Phase 1 will be improvements to North Miller Street and Hawley Street and the extension of McKittrick Street to provide new east/west access.  

Lewing says an underpass and bridge will be built to eliminate street level railroad crossings. 

"Miller Street will go over the BNSF tracks," Lewing said. "And then McKittrick is extended from the improvements that were built last year, and McKittrick will go under the BNSF tracks." 

Plans call for McKittrick Street to be extended from North Wenatchee Avenue (SR 285) west to a bend in the road where Miller Street turns into Hawley Street, where a roundabout will be built. 

The current budget for Phase 1 of the project is $128 million. Lewing said that figure would be modified as they continue to work with their design builder to find practical designs and cost saving ideas.  

A final price will be negotiated later this year to start construction of Phase 1 in the spring of 2025. Current plans call for Phase one to be substantially completed and open to traffic by November of 2027. Phase 1 is being developed and built through the City’s INFRA Grant and Move Ahead Washington funds. 

The overall Confluence Parkway Project is a major investment for the city of Wenatchee. The recent notable escalation in construction costs, property prices, and the effects from inflation over the past several years is increasing costs across the project.  

Due to these increases, the project’s available funding may not stretch as far as initially planned. As a result, we will plan to phase in elements of the project over a period of years as funding becomes available. 

The project is now divided into 4 Phases.