A 28-Foot Bridge Is About to Reroute Mill Creek's East-West Traffic for Two Weekends

The bridge that carries 164th Street SE over North Creek is 28 feet long, a single span that's easy to drive over without noticing. It was built in pieces. The original 59-foot-wide deck went in in 1967, and a 16-foot widening on the south side followed in 1989. In 2012 a repair replaced a 13-foot section of the original timber pile cap near the southwest corner.

The City of Mill Creek calls that short crossing a major east-west arterial. Starting Friday night, Nov. 13, it will be closed to all traffic for the first of two weekends.

Two windows, 110 hours

The city has scheduled two full closures. Both start on a Friday night and reopen before the Monday commute.

That's 110 hours with no traffic crossing North Creek on 164th. The second weekend ends three days before Thanksgiving on Nov. 26. The city expects "substantial delays on surrounding roadways" and asks drivers to allow extra time, avoid the area when they can and use other routes.

Why one column closed the whole crossing

The city brought in the engineering consultant Otak to do a physical field inspection of the bridge. That evaluation rated one of the seven support columns on the south side of the street in poor condition. The south side is the part added in the 1989 widening. An emergency declaration was signed Oct. 20, and traffic changes began Oct. 23.

When the city announced the repairs in October, Interim Public Works Director Keegan Pocinwong described what was at stake. The Mill Creek Beacon carried his comments, and the full statement is in the city's October notice:

"These repairs are essential to maintaining safe travel through one of Mill Creek's most important corridors."

The partial lane closure since late October hasn't been enough for the work ahead. The Herald reported that city spokesperson Jody Hawkins said in the release that the full closures are needed to give crews room to work safely and to speed up the restoration.

The detour heads south before it heads east

For a crossing this short, the official detour is long. Drivers headed east on 164th Street SE will be routed this way:

1. South on North Road
2. East on Filbert Road
3. North on Bothell-Everett Highway

So a trip that normally runs straight east becomes a loop. It drops south to Filbert Road and comes back north on Bothell-Everett Highway. That shifts weekend traffic onto North Road, Filbert Road and Bothell-Everett Highway, which is why the city's warning covers surrounding roadways and not only 164th.

From the west, you can still drive as far as 5th Avenue and North Creek Presbyterian Church at 621 164th St SE. That makes the church's block the last stop on the west side. The city has posted a full detour map and the traffic control plan. Both are worth a look before Friday if you use this stretch regularly.

Where familiar stops sit along the corridor

For these two weekends, the useful question about any errand on 164th is which side of North Creek it's on. A few landmarks help:

• North Creek Presbyterian Church, 621 164th St SE. Reachable from the west, at the edge of the local-access zone. It's worth checking with the church directly about any weekend schedule changes.
• Safeway, 16304 Bothell Everett Hwy. At the Bothell-Everett Highway and 164th Street SE end of the corridor, on the highway that forms the last leg of the detour.
• McCollum Pioneer Park. A Snohomish County park with trails, next to McCollum Park–Park & Ride.
• North Creek Trail. In Mill Creek, the trail runs from McCollum Park toward the southern city limits, with entrances along Main Street.

The trail is worth remembering on closure weekends. You walk to it from Main Street entrances, so a Saturday walk along North Creek doesn't have to involve 164th at all.

Two bus routes run this corridor

The detour affects more than drivers. Community Transit's Swift Orange Line runs between Edmonds College and McCollum Park Park & Ride, and its route includes a 164th St SE NB Station. Route 166 also uses 164th Street SE, with stops at North Road, 1st Avenue SE, 3rd Avenue SE and Mill Creek Boulevard.

The city says it's coordinating with Community Transit, Snohomish County, the Washington State Department of Transportation, Everett Public Schools and local businesses to keep impacts down. If you ride Swift Orange or Route 166 on the weekends of Nov. 13 and Nov. 20, check Community Transit's rider alerts page for those dates before you head to your stop.

After Nov. 23, one lane stays closed into December

Monday's reopening doesn't end the work. The eastbound lane shift that started Oct. 23 near North Creek Presbyterian Church closes the far-right lane by the sidewalk and moves traffic into the left lane and center turn lane. The city expects these temporary adjustments to stay in place through mid-December 2026, and says lane patterns may change as the project moves into construction.

So the narrowed lanes will likely still be in place on Saturday, Dec. 5, when Holidays on Main fills Town Center at 15310 Main St. from noon to 6 p.m. That day, the Mill Creek Chamber of Commerce hosts Santa's Snowflake Village at The Forum, 15121 Main St., from noon to 4 p.m. The Santa Parade heads south on Main Street at 4 p.m., and the city lights the tree at 5 p.m. at Jewelry Source Plaza, 15603 Main St. If your route to Main Street that afternoon uses 164th eastbound, expect the single-lane setup.

The city describes the current repairs as rehabilitation meant to restore full capacity and extend the bridge's service life. It also plans a separate comprehensive study of long-term solutions, including how to handle growing traffic volume. For updates as the work goes on, the city's project page is at millcreekwa.gov/northcreekbridge.

If you're thinking about listing a home near the 164th corridor this winter, it helps to know how construction weeks line up with showings and open houses. Wanis Nadir tracks Mill Creek's market with live data and can help you plan your timing around the work. Start with your Instant Home Valuation and we'll go from there.