Hood Canal Bridge closure has commuters, businesses ready to improvise

BREMERTON — Starting May 1, Denise James' two-hour commute will read like a complicated French recipe.

First, a dash to Shine pit from her Chimacum home. Cut across Hood Canal on the foot ferry. Simmer on a bus ride 5 miles in the wrong direction to Port Gamble. Stew for a while on the van pool that will finally take her to work in Keyport.

"It's not worth it," she said, "four hours a day." Instead, she's looking at a combination of staying with family in Kitsap and camping out in her trailer for the closure.

Getting between Kitsap and Jefferson counties is going to become a chore when the Hood Canal bridge closes for up to six weeks beginning May 1, especially for those who cross it to get to work. The bridge is closing while crews undertake the replacement of the deteriorating east half — part of a 13-year, $499.8 million project to upgrade the bridge.

But while commuters are dreading it, entrepreneurs and residents who live along routes around the canal have mixed feelings about what the closure of the main vehicle link between the two counties will mean.

Drivers: a choice

Drivers on both sides will have to decide which option best fits their schedules: leave a car during the week in designated parking lots on either side, or add miles to odometers and hours to commutes by driving around.

Barry Berezowsky, the planning director for the city of Poulsbo who commutes from Sequim, plans to test the waters.

"I'm going to test the ferry system," he said. If the water shuttle that leads from Southpoint to Lofall adds more than about 45 minutes to his commute, he may adjust his plans.

"The jury's out right now," he said.

He's a participant in a Kitsap/Jefferson county-based telecommuting pilot project and will work from home about two days a week.

To dull the potential hassle of the four- to six-week closure, he's got one more remedy planned.

"It seems to be a good time to take some vacation," he said.

Realizing the extra hassle will be tough on commuters, members of the Quilcene/Brinnon Chamber of Commerce made preparations to accommodate drivers.

The chamber plans to provide coffee and doughnuts in the morning at the Brinnon Community Center. Coffee and cookies may be offered in the evening.

Businesses: an opportunity?

At the Port Townsend Gallery, the board of directors has been socking away money to make sure it gets through what will likely be a slow six weeks.

"May and June are good months for us," Arliss Newcomb said. "Fortunately for us, we kind of looked ahead."

They don't rely solely on tourist dollars, so they'll be OK, she said.

"This town's gone up and down a few times so I think it'll survive," she said.

Down the street, Susan Jacob at Sport Townsend hopes the captive Jefferson County audience will take the closure as a cue to shop local.

"We're hoping to see this as another opportunity to promote the downtown," she said.

Across the bridge in Port Gamble, Ethel Molina, owner of the Port Gamble General Store, and fellow business owners regard the bridge closure as an opportunity.

"I'm kind of excited because Port Gamble is going to be exposed to so many people," Molina said. "A lot of drivers go by and don't stop. This is that great opportunity for people from all over to stop."

Molina will adjust business hours to accommodate commuters by opening at 5 a.m. She plans to offer to-go breakfast and lunch options, and for those with time to kill on their way home, a glass of wine or beer.

"I want people to know we're going to be here to help them any way we can," she said.

Up the street, co-owners of Harmony by the Bay, Sean Wescott and business partner Katherine Klint, are also excited about the closure.

Hearing reports from the department of transportation that 13,000 people could use the park-and-ride lot during the closure, the pair see it as the perfect opportunity to grow business.

"It will be good for us because it will make the locals come in here," Wescott said. "We plan to take advantage of that as much as we can."

Not all affected business owners are optimistic.

Fisherman Randy Jones, who runs Venture Charters out of Port Orchard, said his business would struggle during the closure.

"This year the Hood Canal bridge will be closed right in the middle of halibut fishing so it's going to be difficult for a lot of people to come up and halibut fish," he said.

Most of his fishing is out of Sequim and Port Angeles.

"It's going to mean a lot of lost revenue," he said. Locals might just have the water to themselves.

Further south along Highway 101, Olympic Art Gallery owners Charlie and Sally Brown aren't sure what the bridge closure will mean for their Quilcene-based business.

"We know there's going to be more traffic, we're just wondering what kind of traffic," Charlie Brown said. "What's going to hurt us with the bridge closure is it's going to shut our Seattle traffic down."

The couple still plan to hold their annual Olympic Art Festival May 23-24, and they said other area festivals, including Brinnon's annual Shrimp Festival, are still planned.

"Not having been through one of these before, it's really hard to say what would happen," Brown said.

Traffic: changing patterns

Just south of the bridge on the Kitsap County side, Chuck and Cheri Gerstenberger have dealt with many busy rush hours and summer tourist backups that can make getting to their Bridge Drive home a chore.

With the bridge out, the couple expected to have a little peace and quiet for once.

"We were looking forward to that," Cheri Gerstenberger said.

But then night work started on the bridge. A clanking cacophony and floodlights now drench the work site — and their bedroom — every night starting around 8:30.

At least the traffic will die down when the span closes. Near the bridge, for residents like the Gerstenbergers, traffic will likely fall off. Those who live along Highways 106 and 101 — two main routes to navigate around Hood Canal — are more likely to see traffic increase. Logging trucks and neighbors will have to get used to sharing the two-lane highway with regular commuters and weekend tourists.

David Cullerton lives along 101 in Hoodsport, near the Hoodsport Winery. He's seen trucks plow through his neighborhood before.

"I hope they'll take it slow," he said.

Some parts of the two-lane highway pass through residential areas, where the speed limit ranges from 30 mph to 45 mph.

It's scenic territory, so Cullerton urges people to take in the sights.

"Take it slow and enjoy the scenery," he said. "It's a beautiful canal."

To handle the increase in traffic, the Washington State Department of Transportation made road improvements, widening and repaving portions of the road in areas that will see significant use.

The Washington State Patrol is beefing up its presence on Hood Canal, said Trooper Krista Hedstrom.

Extra troopers will monitor locations prone to backups to make sure traffic keeps flowing, and an aircraft could patrol areas near Quilcene. Realizing some may be in a rush, troopers will be looking out for aggressive drivers along the windy, two-lane highway.

"That's the last thing we want," Hedstrom said.

Rangers in the Olympic National Forest's Hood Canal Ranger District are readying themselves for the closure, and trying to let people know they could experience delays with the increased traffic.

"Our access is through 101," district ranger Dean Yoshina said from his Quilcene office. "We expect the traffic to be double, and that has a direct effect on our operations and our safety."

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office plans to open a temporary office in the Brinnon Fire Department beginning May 1, which will handle the safety needs of the county's south end.