River Avenue Construction
NIC Board Chair Mic Armon, Coeur d'Alene Mayor Sandi Bloem, NIC President Priscilla Bell and Lake City Development Corporation Board Chair Denny Davis cut the ribbon on Hubbard Avenue. >> Watch the Video

Updates

Officials celebrate completion of groundwork on the Education Corridor

November 16, 2011
After decades of dreaming, years of planning and months of construction, officials celebrated the completion of the infrastructure on the site of the Education Corridor with a ribbon cutting ceremony Nov. 15.

Formed from a collaboration among North Idaho College, Lewis-Clark State College, the University of Idaho, the City of Coeur d’Alene and the Lake City Development Corporation, the Education Corridor is a visionary higher education corridor stretching along the shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene to the north of NIC’s current campus, that will provide academic opportunities and make a positive economic impact for residents of North Idaho.

Representatives from each of the institutions and organizations involved broke ground on the $3.6 million construction project by MDM Construction in June. Phase 1A of the project, paid for with urban renewal funding, included roadways, roundabouts, sidewalks, curbs and a traffic signal on Northwest Boulevard and Hubbard. Planning for phase 1B of the project will be considered in the spring.

Trees going in across construction site

November 4, 2011
More than 400 new trees are currently being planted across the Education Corridor site by employees of DewDrop Sprinklers and Landscaping. In addition, construction crews are continuing work on a segment of the Centennial Trail. Tree planting will continue on the site throughout next week as well as cleanup and finish work.

Hubbard is accessible to students, employees, and visitors to the Harbor Center, but is still closed to through traffic. Hubbard is expected to be open the week of Nov. 14. There is an issue with the lighting system on the new signal at Northwest Boulevard and Hubbard and it will remain flashing red until the issue is resolved. Drivers should treat the intersection as a four-way stop until the light is operating normally again.

Academic Way to be paved Wednesday

October 25, 2011
Academic Way (the entrance to the Harbor Center) will be closed Wednesday, Oct. 26 while crews pave the road. Employees, students, and visitors of Lewis-Clark State College and the University of Idaho must use Military Drive to access Parking Lot B on the former mill site log yard. A staff person with MDM construction will help people walk across Hubbard and down the former bike path to enter the Harbor Center. Please do not use the alternate access road through the Riverstone area, as it will be closed at times as well. Academic Way is expected to be open again by the end of the day Wednesday. Thank you for your patience throughout the construction process!

Hubbard will remain closed off of Northwest Boulevard for at least the remainder of the week and possibly longer while trees are planted and other site work is completed. Those needing access to the Harbor Center can continue to use Military Drive to connect to Hubbard and access Academic Way.

Hubbard being striped today

October 19, 2011
Crews are currently striping Hubbard Street from River Avenue to Northwest Boulevard. Employees and students with vehicles at the Harbor Center must exit via the alternate route through Riverstone. Students, employees, and visitors needing access to Lewis-Clark State College and the University of Idaho Coeur d’Alene centers while striping is in progress can also park in Parking Lot B from Military Drive (accessible from River Avenue on the NIC campus) and walk across Hubbard to Academic Way. Signage installation and striping is also taking place throughout the construction site, so please be aware of crews working along the shoulder.

The signal at Northwest Boulevard and Hubbard has been installed and is tentatively scheduled to be operational next week after crosswalks have been striped, which is dependent on dry weather.

Construction site cleanup will take place on Saturday, Oct. 22 and the paving of Academic Way (the access road to the Harbor Center) is tentatively scheduled for next week. Watch for further details on traffic revisions related to the paving schedule and trees to be planted soon throughout the site.

Harbor Center access from Hubbard Avenue closed

October 13, 2011
Access to the Harbor Center from Hubbard Avenue will be closed on Friday, Oct. 14 and Monday, Oct. 17 for paving and the road is expected to be open on Tuesday. An alternate route has been established through the Riverstone area.

Individuals wishing to access the Harbor Center should follow this route which will be marked with detour signs: From Northwest Boulevard, turn west on Lakewood and right on Riverstone. Turn left on Beebe Avenue and cross the railroad tracks. Immediately after crossing the railroad tracks, turn left (before the Cenntenial Trail) and follow the frontage road toward the Harbor Center. A new temporary entrance to the Harbor Center has been created.

East side of River Avenue closed

October 10, 2011
River Avenue is closed today from Hubbard Avenue east while the road is paved. This closure restricts access to Military Drive. Homeowners along Military Drive, Harbor Center students and employees, and those needing access to the Fort Ground Grill and North Idaho College’s Headwaters Complex buildings should use the Hubbard entrance off of Northwest Boulevard.

River Avenue is open to the west of Hubbard and through to Rosenberry Drive (the dike road).

Once paving on River Avenue is complete, crews will focus on paving Hubbard from the new roundabout on River through to Northwest Boulevard.

River to be closed Saturday

October 7, 2011
River Avenue will be closed Saturday, Oct. 8 for paving. This will restrict access to homeowners along Military Drive, the Military entrance to the Harbor Center, the Lewis-Clark State College portables, and all NIC buildings along River Avenue (including Timber Hall and the Headwaters Complex).

Homeowners along Military Drive can enter and exit to the north of their neighborhood through Parking Lot B and onto Hubbard. The Fort Ground Grill will remain open on Saturday and construction crews will work with drivers to get them to the Grill parking lot.

Curb work will also be taking place on Hubbard, so drivers are asked to be patient as they try to maneuver the construction site on Saturday. River Avenue is expected to be open by the end of the day Saturday.

Access to Harbor Center restricted Friday

October 6, 2011
Access to the Harbor Center will be restricted Friday, Oct. 7. Employees, students, and visitors have been accessing Academic Way via Military Drive, which connects with Hubbard. While NIC students will still be able to access Parking Lot B from Military Drive, access to Hubbard from that lot will be blocked Friday. Those needing access to the University of Idaho—Coeur d’Alene and Lewis-Clark State College—Coeur d’Alene should get onto Hubbard directly from Northwest Boulevard. Crews will make sure cars are able to get through to Academic Way from there.

Water outage to affect Harbor Center/Wastewater Treatment Plant

September 29, 2011
A water outage is scheduled for 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30 that will affect the Harbor Center and Wastewater Treatment Plant as work continues on the Education Corridor site near Northwest Boulevard and Hubbard. Water service is expected to be restored by the end of the day Friday. In addition, crews are expected to work on Saturday, Oct. 1 working with concrete and cleanup.

MDM Construction thanks everyone for their patience during the outage and the construction process.

The Vision

For more than a century lumber mills largely drove the economy upon which our community built its hopes, its dreams, its future. But today we are in transition. The closing of the DeArmond mill - the last of seven mills that once operated here - signals the end of an era. Ahead of us is a future economy marked by the demands of a changing world. To be prepared we must invest in the development of another precious natural resource: the human mind.

River Road RenderingMore than 25 years in the making, the Education Corridor, now shown in its conceptual stage, is the shared vision of a community looking forward. It is a public space with a sense of purpose, a bold initiative of visionary community members, public officials, and educational leaders dedicated to improving learning opportunities, economic growth, and the quality of life for all who call North Idaho home.

Potential Impacts

- EMSI, Regional Impact Scenario and Analysis