In April of 1999, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) began a project to build a new interchange at the intersection of Washington State Road 500 and Thurston Way. The new interchange was aimed at reconfiguring SR 500 traffic in an effort to improve safety, create better road conditions, improve pedestrian and bicycle connections, increase intersection capacity, and decrease congestion. This project became the first design-build endeavor in the State of Washington, allowing the WSDOT to accelerate the construction schedule and minimize construction costs.
WSDOT chose the Kuney/Entranco design-build partnership to construct the new interchange, consisting of the Max J, Kuney Company, a construction company, and Entraco, a civil engineering firm. The $26 million project was funded mainly through State and Federal funds.
Construction on the Thurston Way Interchange began in April 2001, and was completed by October 2002. The final project costs are estimated at $26.8 million, meeting the project targets and more than a year earlier than with the conventional design-bid-build method.