ENCINITAS — The Encinitas City Council on Wednesday voted unanimously to finalize the current phase of the Santa Fe Drive Corridor project and begin considering possible changes based on public input.
The council approved four administrative actions, including a notice of completion for the work performed by contractor Tri-Group Construction, the release of bonds, and a resolution adopting interim improvements.
The project, which concluded in April 2025, includes new separated bike lanes, sidewalks, reverse-angle parking, landscaping, and drainage infrastructure, as well as a mid-block crossing near San Dieguito Academy.
City Engineer Badr Suleiman presented an overview of the work completed under the Western Phase, noting the project aimed to address safety and mobility deficiencies along the corridor, particularly for students accessing the nearby school.
“Previously there was no sidewalk, no bike lane amenities on that side of the road. Now there is a level walkway with a separated bike path going east,” Suleiman said. “The bike lane has shifted closest to the curb, protected by the reverse angle parking, with the travel lane away from the bicyclist.”
Suleiman noted the city conducted site visits, corridor observations, camera monitoring, and received more than 1,000 survey responses. While respondents favored the new bike lanes, sidewalks and mid-block crossing, they expressed dissatisfaction with reverse-angle parking and narrow travel lanes. Most survey respondents disagreed that reverse-angle parking was useful.
Public comment during the meeting focused heavily on concerns about reverse-angle parking, travel lane width, pedestrian safety, and emergency vehicle access. Multiple speakers described difficulties navigating the corridor and pointed to what they called design flaws.
Cathy Santone, who owns a dental office on the corridor, raised accessibility concerns and said her practice lost five dedicated parking spaces.
“Our patients report how stressful it is to stop traffic and back into park on a narrow eastbound lane,” Santone said. “It is dangerous for them to navigate to our office as they must step over the high curb into a bike lane with an occasional cyclist just to get to their appointment.”
Other residents, including Judy Berlfein, urged the council to maintain the current layout and avoid unnecessary spending on changes.
“I urge you to review the before and after photos from the agenda report that we just saw,” Berlfein said. “Remember, this road was not great before this project. It’s not perfect now, but it’s a million times better.”
Resident Travis Newhouse, who lives one block from Santa Fe Drive and regularly walks on the improved roadway, urged the council to complete the project as originally designed.
“Don’t waste precious tax money reconfiguring parking spaces,” Newhouse wrote to the council. “The head-out (reverse angle) parking has worked great on South Coast Highway 101 at San Elijo State Beach. I am sure that after a period of adjustments, drivers will come to realize the safety benefits and ease of using this type of parking configuration.”
Mayor Bruce Ehlers emphasized that the city must prioritize safety, adding it is unsafe for emergency vehicles to navigate the corridor and difficult for others.
“The Post Office determined it’s unsafe to deliver mail,” Ehlers said, citing a design-related issue that halted service to 24 homes. “In 25 years, I can’t remember a single project in the City of Encinitas that had that same response.”
The council directed staff to continue evaluating potential design changes. Recommended options included adding pedestrian cut-throughs, striping bike lane conflict zones, reducing the height of speed bumps, and reconfiguring parking. Staff also confirmed that a private development at 845 Santa Fe Drive may fund a full traffic signal at the mid-block crossing in the future.
The Eastern Phase of the corridor project, extending improvements to El Camino Real, remains pending and was not addressed in detail during this meeting.
1 comment
The whole fiasco needs to be reversed, especially getting rid of reverse parking and widening the lanes. IMO.
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