Unless you walk to school, the closure on N 145th St, between first avenue and the entrance/exit ramps of I-5 south, has likely been another obstacle in your already tight commute. Although the official end date of the closure is early October, the City of Shoreline’s very diplomatic website conservatively states the closure will last until “fall 2024.”
The renovation is being performed by the City of Shoreline to rewire and repipe electricity and other utilities for the new apartment complexes being built across 145th. Though it would have been possible to perform these renovations without closing the street, the city noted that doing so makes for a much more efficient process.
But enough of what’s causing the closure. What you probably want to know is how to get around it — and for that, you’ve come to the right man. I’ve lived in this area for a couple of years and have alternative routes in mind, arranged by which route you take to get to school:
I-5 northbound
There are a couple options here. You could take the northgate exit, continue on 1st Ave NE, which eventually turns into 117th — and make a right turn back onto 1st Ave. A more popular option would be to take the 130th St exit — and there are several ways you could proceed from there. Most students take a left on 130th and a right on 1st Ave northbound. Of course, the issue here is that 1st Ave gets very busy, especially now that 145th is closed.
So, if you hate sitting in traffic, or are running late from class and aren’t infected with senioritis, you could take a right on 3rd Ave, drive around the east side of the middle school’s campus, and make a right on 2nd, bringing you straight to parking on the softball field. Alternatively, you could make a right on 136th, which turns into 4th Ave NE and leads straight into parking behind the WCC.
If driving down smaller streets isn’t your cup of tea, you could instead take Corliss or Meridian Ave N, though I might recommend turning right on 140th rather than 145th since lane restrictions on the latter might slow you down.
I-5 southbound
Your options here are unfortunately looking pretty inconvenient — at least compared to your fellow Lakesiders on I-5 northbound. The only exit on I-5 S north of 145th is 175th, so you’ll be looking to take that and then make a left onto Meridian. From here, you could make a left on 140th or 145th. However, you might find a lot of traffic on Meridian southbound, and in that case, a left onto 155th and a right onto 1st Ave will make your commute a bit shorter.
Alternatively, you could make a left onto Ashworth or even Aurora instead of Meridian, if you find the latter street is stacked to the hilt with cars. If you take this approach, though, you can’t make a left on 140th since the street doesn’t exist west of Meridian — use either 145th, 155th, or 137th to cut east.
145th, east of I-5
Essentially, your main problem is crossing I-5 — once you can do that, you can follow many of the same paths as those taking I-5. If coming from the north, you can’t really cross anywhere north of 155th because the McAleer Creek area of Shoreline has complex and winding road patterns. If you’re coming down 15th Ave, then turning right on 155th and using its I-5 underpass is a viable option. However, Shorecrest High School and Hamlin Park interrupt 155th, so if you’re coming to Lakeside via Bothell Way NE, you could either take 145th, make a right on 15th, then 155th, or travel south on SR-522 and make a right on 125th, which turns into 130th — at which point you can follow the instructions for “I-5 northbound.”
If, instead, you come southbound on Lake City Way or 15th Ave, you should make a right on 125th, which will take you across I-5. Another option is to make a left on NE Northgate Way, at which point you can make a right on 1st Ave NE and follow instructions for “I-5 northbound.”
So no matter what route you take to school, you need not fear! For I have hopefully brought upon your commute some cheer!
