A section of sidewalk in the Maplewood neighborhood will soon be repaired to improve pedestrian safety.

On Nov. 17, the Renton City Council awarded a construction contract to Active Construction Inc. for the Maplewood Sidewalk Rehabilitation project. The company submitted the lowest bid out of 15 bids at $732,732, which was $447,499 under the engineer’s estimate for the project.

The work of the project includes replacing the aging curb, gutter and sidewalk, replacing a stormwater line and adding a raised intersection at SE Fifth and SE Sixth Streets with bulb-out corners in the Maplewood Glen neighborhood, according to the agenda bill.

City officials said the main objective of the project is to increase pedestrian safety in the area.

“Deficiencies in the sidewalks such as broken and uneven panels and inadequate width will be addressed with this project,“ Renton Engineering Specialist Josef Harnden said.

The raised intersection with narrowed lanes will have a natural traffic-calming effect on cars passing through the intersection.

According to Safe Roads USA, the bulb-out corners also help pedestrians by shortening the distance of crossing a street, preventing cars from parking near the corner and obstructing the view of the pedestrian, and slowing the vehicles that are turning to give the pedestrian more lead time while crossing. The organization said giving a pedestrian lead time before traffic starts to move has been shown to reduce pedestrian-auto collisions by as much as 60%.

The construction work will close the Maplewood Glen entrance at SE Fifth Street and portions of SE Fifth and SE Sixth Streets within the project boundaries. Detours will be put in place to ensure residents always have access to their property and the contractor will coordinate with each resident in advance to mitigate driveway access interruptions during sidewalk paving activities.

Construction is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2026.