CARLSBAD — The City Council has postponed awarding a $5.6 million contract to build five traffic circles in the Barrio and Village neighborhoods, requesting staff return later this month with information on alternative traffic calming measures.
Originally scheduled for the June 24 consent calendar after gaining approval in March, the item was pulled by Councilmember Melanie Burkholder, who represents the area where the project would be located. She expressed concerns that the traffic circles would eliminate dozens of parking spaces in the community.
City staff will now explore other options, such as stop signs, speed bumps and hybrid combinations with traffic circles, while also conducting outreach to inform residents of potential changes.
As proposed, the project would install traffic circles at the intersections of Harding Street and Pine Avenue, Jefferson Street and Oak Avenue, Pine and Madison Street, Madison and Chestnut Avenue, and Chestnut and Roosevelt Street.
City staff initially estimated the project would remove 46 parking spaces, but later revised that number to 38 after excluding eight red-curbed spaces. Of those 38 spaces, 11 were already set for removal under a new state daylighting law, meaning the traffic circle project would eliminate 27 spaces on its own.
Burkholder said she is “closely connected with her constituents” and noted that many residents now oppose the traffic circles due to the loss of parking.
Mayor Pro Tem Priya Bhat-Patel and other council members, including Teresa Acosta and Kevin Shin, said they want to hear more community feedback before making a final decision.
“We have money given to us by Congressman Mike Levin and it’s not a small chunk of change,” Bhat-Patel said. “I feel very uncomfortable just saying no today.”
Discussions about traffic circles date back to 2014, according to Transportation Director and City Engineer Tom Frank, when planning for the Village and Barrio Master Plan began. Bhat-Patel noted that community members initially supported the circles in 2019 as a way to slow traffic.
Frank said the staff is implementing a three-phase parking strategy to offset the lost spaces. The first phase would add 13 parking spaces — eight on Madison Street and five on Chestnut Avenue. The second phase, expected by year’s end, would reevaluate red curbs to add around 10 more spaces. The third phase would consider converting parallel spaces to diagonal parking on wider streets.
One key concern is the potential loss of a $4 million federal grant secured by Rep. Mike Levin (D-San Juan Capistrano) if the project is changed significantly or canceled. The grant covers the bulk of the $5.6 million cost, with the city responsible for the remaining $1.6 million. A separate $1 million grant from Levin is designated for a Village and Barrio lighting project.
If the council removes one or more of the traffic circles, staff said, the city risks missing a funding deadline and forfeiting the federal money.
The item is expected to return to the council on July 29. A decision must be made before Aug. 5, when contractor bids are set to expire.
