Right now, the Seattle Public Utility and the Ship Canal Water Quality Project are asking for public votes on the final name for the Tunnel Boring Machine that will dig the elongated storage tunnel being built beneath Fremont, from Ballard to Wallingford.
Everyone is invited to vote (click here,) through March 31st, on their favorite name from among the five finalists:
- MudHoney (Because Seattle, baby!)
- Sir Digs-A-Lot (We like big drills, and we cannot lie – and we also like the local musician who does so much for the music scene in Seattle!)
- Boris The Plunger (for the J.P. Patches fans!)
- Molly the Mole (moles dig great holes)
- Daphne (everyone’s favorite fresh water planktonic crustaceans)
The SPU staff culled down the 1,200 submissions to these five, but they are sharing a few of the funnier ideas on YouTube (click here.) The final name will be announced in mid-April and this summer the TBM will begin digging the 2.7-mile long, 18ft 10in diameter storage tunnel.
The construction of the Ship Canal Water Quality Project is going on right now, and the soon-to-be-named tunnel boring machine is being assembled right now at the Ballard site. At the Fremont site, at Leary Way NW & NW 2nd Ave, utility work continues, with generators operating constantly. This work will affect traffic, including pedestrians being detoured to the north side of the street at the work site – to walk by Alberono’s. In early April, crews will be installing a new water main and this work can close up to two travel lanes at a time but two-way traffic will be assisted by flaggers. Near the site, there may be a short, and temporary, water shut off.
The Ship Canal Water Quality Project will, by 2025, be able to keep storm water and sewage overflow out of the public waterway. Learn more about the project, and the importance of the soon-to-be-named TBM, on the SPU website. For answers to specific questions, contact SPU_ShipCanalProject@seattle.gov or 206/701-0233.