City staff provides update on major roadway projects
Crews prepare for the installation of a traffic signal at Murrieta Road and Sun City Boulevard. (Staff photos) By Doug Spoon, Editor City ...
By Doug Spoon, Editor
City of Menifee staff members provided an update on Capital Improvement Projects at a City Council workshop on Wednesday, including the latest on plans for the Holland Road Overpass.
The most recent projected date for start of construction remains August, said Public Works director Nick Fidler, Although the waiting game continues regarding permits from some agencies involved, Fidler said final approval from Caltrans is the only hurdle that must be cleared before the project can go out to bid.
“We’re finishing the environmental documents and awaiting Caltrans approval,” Fidler said. “We expect that in a couple weeks, it should go out to bid.
“Caltrans has been very good to work with. There are other agencies we’ve had more trouble with in getting permits, but when we get approval from Caltrans, it will let us continue soliciting bids. We just can’t open them yet.”
The City has a list of pre-qualified contractors to consider for the project, estimated to cost $31.2 million and take 18 months to complete. The overpass will be a bridge that extends Holland Road over the 215 Freeway but will not include on- and off-ramps, because it does not have Caltrans’ required distance from the next closest interchange at Newport Road.
Wednesday’s meeting was intended to update City Council members on current Capital Improvement Program projects and to solicit feedback regarding priority given to upcoming projects. The City uses a 1-4 priority system for projects and allocates funding according to the priority listing.
Here’s an update on some of the other projects discussed at the meeting:
-- City staff is still waiting to receive the $5 million in grant money to help fund the Bradley Road bridge over Salt Creek, which will resolve flooding issues during heavy rains. That money has been assured by the federal government, however, and will be combined with $2 million received from Riverside County flood control officials.
Geronimo reported that when the Bradley Road construction takes place, the recently completed Salt Creek bike trail will either have to be re-routed to a traffic signal just north at Potomac Road or re-designed to intersect with the bridge at its higher elevation. Currently, there is a pedestrian signal on the north side of the creek bed that activates when bikers or hikers approach.
Like the Holland Road Overpass, the Bradley Road bridge is given a No. 1 priority in the Capital Improvement program.
-- Public works director Nick Fidler reported that work was recently completed on the installation of a traffic signal interconnect system designed to sync traffic lights along Newport Road. The next phase of the project is to begin analyzing data to determine the best way to provide a continuous traffic flow along that major thoroughfare, Fidler said.
“For instance, if you are traveling west from Haun Road to Murrieta Road, and you stay within 5 miles per hour of the speed limit, you should be able to have a continuous green light – although the system takes into account turning demands [on cross streets],” Fidler said.
-- A $7.5 million improvement project at Lazy Creek Park – which includes construction of a second community center building – is virtually complete and will be scheduled for a ribbon cutting ceremony soon.
-- A ribbon cutting ceremony also is upcoming to celebrate upgrades to the Paloma Wash Trail, which runs along the wash between Town Center Marketplace and Menifee Town Center, south of Newport Road. The $1.56 million project includes pavement improvements, exercise equipment stops, and hundreds of solar-powered bollard lights along the path.
-- City staff is ready to solicit bids for renovations to Fire Station 68 (on Murrieta Road north of Scott Road, photo below) and construction of a new Quail Valley Fire Station 5 on Goetz Road near Vista Way.
-- The top three prioritized traffic signals for the next phase are at La Piedra Road and Menifee Road; Murrieta Road and Sun City Boulevard; and Menifee Road and Garbani Road. All are expected to be completed by October.
-- A traffic analysis will be conducted to study the future impacts on southeast Menifee neighborhoods of Liberty High School (when it has full enrollment) and the newest elementary school, to be built in a rural area at Briggs Road and Wickerd Road. A section of Briggs Road south of Garbani Road is a dirt road, with half the roadway the responsibility of the City of Menifee and the other half under the authority of Riverside County.
-- A pedestrian bridge linking Town Center Marketplace to Menifee Town Center at Central Park is in the design phase. The bridge was in the original plans, was later removed, but has been restored by city officials.
-- Staff members are trying to determine the best way to make improvements where Holland Road is offset at Murrieta Road (below). Stop signs exist at both offset intersections, with only a two-lane road and no sidewalks along Murrieta Road at that point. Concerns have been raised about the safety of travelers heading to local schools.
After discussion, it was suggested that the project be raised from a priority 4 to a priority 2. Consideration of that move will be made before the next CIP workshop, which is scheduled in a few weeks.
-- Traffic signals are proposed for a stretch of Highway 74 that has little pedestrian access and has been the scene of several accidents in recent years. Plans propose signals at Third Street and at Tradewinds Drive, but no timeline has been set.
-- Dirt is being moved on the south portion of the new Evans Park (below), located at Evans Road and Craig Avenue. Plans call for a pump track for bicycles on that site, with a park to be located north of that site as well.
-- Fidler responded to concerns from council members about pavement issues in areas not already scheduled for resurfacing by suggesting that funds be established for on-call contract services to patch potholes where needed. An asphalt truck has been on order by city staff for more than a year, and there is no scheduled date for delivery.
