Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
North, south and west entrances to the Palouse Scenic Byway are now marked.
Three new gateway signs were installed in September to inform travelers of the route, which was established in 2001, with federal and state grants.
The signs represent the latest step in the long-term project. The final sign was installed Sept. 26.
“When working with federal and state grants, you have to cross a lot of T’s and dot a lot of I’s,” said Vicki Leeper, Coordinator of the Palouse Scenic Byway Commission.
The design of the signs began with a suggestion from Tim Myers, Director of Whitman County Parks, to use columnar basalt, a natural occurring rock in Whitman County. Design West Architects, P.A., in Pullman, engineered the signs and Ace Elliott Landscaping of Pullman installed them.
The west entrance sign is on Highway 26 near LaCrosse, the south entrance sign on Highway 195 south of Uniontown and the north entrance on 195 near Rosalia. Two previously designed signs were installed last year at Tekoa and Palouse.
The next step is to install an informational sign, or kiosk, in each of the 10 communities along the byway which will highlight information about each community. The commission is preparing to put these out for bids. Colfax, Colton, Garfield, LaCrosse, Uniontown, Oakesdale, Tekoa, Rosalia, Palouse, Dusty, Almota and Steptoe are slated.
Funding for this and the entrance signs project comes from a grant from the Washington State Scenic Byway program. The Palouse Scenic Byway is one of 28 scenic byways in the state.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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