MARYSVILLE — Snohomish County is preparing a safety overhaul of a steep stretch of road where a car crash last fall killed a Marysville teenager and seriously injured two others.

Some of those planned fixes are the subject of a $50 million legal action brought last year on behalf of one of the injured teens, The (Everett) Herald reported Sunday.

The damage claim, a precursor to a lawsuit, accuses the county of neglecting to make improvements to an unsafe road.

The claim alleges problems with the slope, limited sight distance and a lack of warning signs on 108th Street near 83rd Avenue Northeast.

"Are they going to agree that they're accountable for this issue?" asked Jim Dore, one of the Kent attorneys who filed the claim. "Maybe that's why they're pushing it through so fast. They don't want to be asked that question by the public."

County prosecutors say lawyers for one of the injured teens will have the chance to inspect the road and review findings of a collision investigation before any roadwork starts.

The work, which likely will be done this summer, is expected to cost as much as $900,000.

The fatal wreck occurred Oct. 24. Juan Mendoza, 16, died when the Honda Civic he was driving west on 108th Street went off the side of the road and hit a tree. Passenger Lars Kundu, 16, continues to recover from head, spinal and other injuries. Another passenger and fellow student, Andy Vavrousek, 17, had serious injuries.

At the time of the accident, the three students had left school before cross-country practice, planning to return after a trip to a 7-Eleven.