Work is expected to begin the first week of June to repair a damaged riverbank structure protecting a state highway, fiber optic line and a long stretch of the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, between Duvall and Stillwater.

Rebuilding the Sinnema Quaale Upper Revetment along on S.R. 203, will requires the complete closure of a stretch of the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, from June 1 to about October 31.

The revetment has been damaged by flooding since 2006, and is in need of repair.  Further damage could affect S.R. 203, public safety and a nearby fiber optic cable line.

Ongoing bank erosion and settling has repeatedly required King County Parks to close this portion of the Snoqualmie Valley Trail on short notice for emergency repairs in the past; this repair should eliminate the need for these temporary closures.

The project includes reconstructing about 750 feet of bank revetment, and rebuilding approximately 1,100 feet of the adjacent trail. The $4.5 million project is funded primarily by the King County Flood Control District.

While construction is underway, the trail will be closed to all use from approximately 1.5 miles south of Northeast 124th Street to 2 miles north of the Stillwater Natural Area.

In addition to improving protection for the state highway, regional trail and a regional fiber optic trunk line, this project will benefit the local ecology by removing the remains of at least 20 rusted 1940s car bodies that were used as a cheap and convenient levee-building material at this site, and are the reason that this location on the Snoqualmie River is locally known to some as Car Body Curve.

The Sinnema Quaale Upper revetment is named after the property’s early settlers in this portion of the Snoqualmie Valley. The Sinnema (Dutch) and Quaale (Norwegian) families farmed the land dating back to the early 1900s and their ancestors live in the area to this day.

Learn more at www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wlr/sections-programs/river-floodplain-section/capital-projects/sinnema-quaale.aspx.