Public Works staff in the city of Port Orchard continue to push forward on road projects with the fall and winter seasons approaching, including one of the city’s newest roundabouts at the intersection of Mitchell Road and Lincoln Avenue, which opened Aug. 30.

Road closures have been in place on all four sides of the intersection since July 8 when crews went to work to construct the small roundabout, the first of two planned near the Y-shaped intersection of Mitchell and Bethel Road.

“Additional work remaining includes installation of new street lighting, final pavement markings and signage,” city Public Works director Denis Ryan says in a Sept. 3 email. “This is still a construction zone as indicated by signage.”

The construction made the first few days of the South Kitsap School District’s earlier start to the school year not as smooth as previously hoped, but Ryan said the minimal delays in the project kept crews on track to finish the major work right at the Labor Day weekend.

He said: “Staff worked to time the project bid and award to coincide with the school’s summer break. Because there were alternate access points for residents and businesses, traffic delays were minimal, allowing for a speedy construction period.”

The city is in the environmental permitting phase of the project’s second portion, a roundabout at the Bethel/Lundberg/Lincoln intersection that could go to construction in summer of 2026. Ryan said both roundabouts are being installed to increase traffic flow in a cost-effective manner while improving pedestrian and driver safety with a regularly high volume of traffic in that area.

Meanwhile, construction in the Pottery Avenue Non-Motorized Improvements project is anticipated to wrap up in October. Work includes installation of sidewalks and flashing crosswalks, buffered bike lanes and re-channelization, among other improvements and repairs.

Drivers who remember the downtown delays caused by roundabout construction at the Bethel/Bay/Maple intersection were forced to tolerate at least one more of those infamous delays Aug. 29. Flagger-controlled traffic was conducted by crews, who returned to the site for what the city called the “final punch list items” for that project. The roundabout has since reopened.