Tacoma’s Pacific Avenue “streetscape” project will get a boost this week courtesy of a $978,300 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to Rep. Norm Dicks.

The congressman said he received word from Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood that the Tacoma grant was approved this week through the Department’s Transportation Community & System Preservation program, which helps local communities improve efficiency and reduce the impacts of transportation.

The grant funding will contribute to the city’s redevelopment of downtown Tacoma’s central artery, Pacific Avenue, through the construction of improved sidewalks, new safety features, bike lanes, street trees and other amenities.

In addition, the streetscape concept will incorporate green infrastructure that provides treatment of stormwater runoff which eventually flows into Puget Sound.

The grant will help Tacoma focus on the portion of Pacific Avenue between S. 7th Street and 17th Street, Rep. Dicks said, which the city has targeted for significant job and housing growth in the coming decades. This corridor is near the Convention Center and the University of Washington Tacoma as well as businesses adjacent to Union Station and area museums.

“This grant continues the momentum that the city has achieved along the Pacific Avenue corridor, helping to make it more accessible, pedestrian friendly and more attractive for those living and working in downtown Tacoma,” Rep. Dicks stated.

For more information about the project, visit http://www.cityoftacoma.org/Page.aspx?nid=734 .