Open house workshop on California Incline draws a feisty crowd
WILMONT In Santa Monica, if you build it, they will come — with concerns, that is.
An open house workshop on Wednesday regarding the eventual California Incline Bridge Replacement Project opened a can of worms regarding the impact construction would have on residents, fears of increased traffic, loud noise and depleted parking. Parking woes seemed to be of the greatest concern amongst those in attendance.
City Hall’s Civil Engineering Division sponsored the community workshop as part of a state-mandated public comment period for the draft of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR), which was released May 23. The public review process will continue until July 9. The report examines the potential impacts the project would have on the surrounding neighborhood.
Originally built in 1930, the California Incline Bridge has been deemed as structurally deficient by authorities. Two bridge inspection reports — in 1989 and 1994, respectively — found the 77-year-old bridge to be in poor condition and in need of replacement.
Serving as the gateway from Ocean Avenue down to Pacific Coast Highway, the dilapidated bridge does not meet current seismic standards, showing signs of its old age, which include breaks and cracks in the primarily concrete structure, according to the EIR.
The project is estimated to cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $9 million. The initial plan calls for the demolition of the existing structure, excavation and construction of a replacement bridge.
Work is expected to begin by the end of 2008 and be completed by mid-2009. The final design plans have not yet been drafted for the project, said Mark Cuneo, a managing engineer with the Civil Engineering Division. He does expect that the replacement bridge will be architecturally similar to the current structure.
The EIR examines potentially adverse ramifications to the neighborhood surrounding the project.
Among the potential impacts is the possible exposure of asbestos-containing material and contamination from lead-based paint. Due to the era in which the bridge was constructed, the report found that the existing structure could contain such contaminants.
Due to the use of raw materials for construction,the EIR found the project could also lead to stormwater runoff contamination.
But aside from possible contamination issues, the biggest concern that consultants with Jones & Stokes heard from residents during the compilation of the report were traffic and historic preservation, as the bridge was determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places in 1998, said Silpa Trisal, a consultant with the firm, which conducted the study.
MUCH ADO ABOUT TRAFFIC Traffic appears to be a key concern for many residents who fear congestion on PCH and Ocean Avenue throughout the duration of the project, which would shut down the bridge and one of the main arteries for motorists into the heart of the city from the beach for up to 10 months.
City officials should consider allowing construction to go on 24 hours a day, seven days a week in order to complete the project as soon as possible,said George Wolfberg,the president of the Santa Monica Canyon Civic Association.
“If you look at how many people are inconvenienced each day of construction, it’s thousands of people,” Wolfberg said, refer-ring to the number of motorists that travel through Santa Monica each day. “I’m not denying that the people who live close by (would be inconvenienced).”
Wolfberg believes City Hall might be able to work out a deal in which noisy construction, such as jackhammering and drilling, would be limited to daylight hours.
A Traffic Management Plan will be in the works to look into several ways in which congestion can be mitigated. During construction, traffic on PCH will be detoured past the California Incline exit south to the ramp leading up to the intersection of Moomat Ahiko Way and Ocean Avenue, located near the Santa Monica Pier.
The traffic signal at the intersection of Moomat Ahiko Way and Ocean Avenue will be coordinated with the one at Ocean and Colorado avenues in another congestion-calming measure, said Bob Cheung, a traffic consultant with Katz, Okitsu & Associates.
High on the list of concerns among residents is how cut-through traffic in residential neighborhoods will be discouraged.
Diane Wolfberg believes proper signage will be necessary, hoping that a notice won’t be posted at West Channel Road stating that it is the last exit because the California Incline Bridge will be closed.
“I want to have a good sign directing (traffic) south to PCH to let them know they can get off at the pier,” Wolfberg said.
Traffic engineers recognize that many motorists will use Lincoln Boulevard as a detour,taking it to San Vicente Boulevard down Entrada Drive and West Channel Road to access PCH. City Hall plans to work with Caltrans in order to find ways to discourage motorists from taking these routes, Cheung said.
A BEEF WITH PARKING One of the biggest concerns for the Wilshire-Montana Neighborhood Coalition is that parking spaces not get snatched up by project workers and the various pieces of equipment that would be deployed to the site. The coalition serves residents in the area bounded by Wilshire Boulevard to Montana Avenue, 21st Street to Ocean Avenue. The project falls within the neighborhood’s boundaries.
One option would be to shuttle construction workers from a satellite parking lot to the site, something that has been done in other city projects, Trisal said.
For residents in the Wilmont area, parking has been the bane of their existence for years. The neighbors tend to groan whenever they hear of a construction project in the area, wondering “why us,” said Rosemary Sostarich, a member of the coalition.
“We are in the densest neighborhood in the city,” according to Sostarich. “We’re always concerned when there’s a new project built in the area.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 22, 2007. Read the original PDF.