VISTA — The Vista City Council agreed to pursue a phased construction schedule for the long-awaited Emerald Drive corridor improvement project, with the city set to begin the first phase in the upcoming fiscal year while continuing to pursue funding for future phases.
Emerald Drive is a residential street running from Olive Avenue to West Drive that has seen an increase in speeding and traffic collisions over the years. Residents have repeatedly advocated for traffic calming measures.
Now planned for several years, the Emerald Drive project will add six roundabouts at Timothy Place, Jonathan Place, Galbar Street, Chasin Street, Ravine Road, and Silver Fox Lane, as well as ADA sidewalks and ramps, high-visibility pedestrian crossings, landscaped medians, bus pads, and bike lane striping.
“The Emerald Drive Complete Streets Project will transform Emerald Drive into a calmed, pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly corridor,” Principal Engineer Matthew Atteberry told the City Council on Tuesday.
Total costs for the project are estimated at $12 million. While Rep. Mike Levin has allocated $2.8 million, the city is currently facing a $9.2 million shortfall. However, after further discussions with Levin’s office, the Congressman has recommended a $3.5 million congressional earmark for the 2027 fiscal year.
Because the project is otherwise at 100% design and considered shovel-ready, city staff recommended breaking it into six phases. The first phase, which will be fully funded at $2.8 million, will add two permanent concrete roundabouts at Timothy Place and Jonathan Place, and add a temporary roundabout at Galbar Street.
The City Council unanimously supported the phased approach.
“I’m really pleased that we have some financing support to start to move forward in construction,” said Councilmember Katie Melendez. “This has been a longtime planned project. This Emerald Drive Complete Streets Project was on my desk when I was elected in 2020, and the biggest barrier when I first got into office was, how are we going to fund it?”
City staff is also continuing to apply for federal and state construction grants. Starting the project now will make it easier to obtain earmarks in the future, they said.
“Staff is hopeful that the project will be complete over the next five years,” Atteberry said.
Local resident Denisse Barragan, who lives near Galbar Street and Emerald Drive, said local residents have been waiting eight years for this project, and that many neighbors are excited for improvements to begin.
“I’m glad the focus is on the North Emerald Drive part of that corridor. That’s where the most accidents and speeding has occurred over the past couple of years,” Barragan said. “I’m glad to hear that we’re now gonna be able to see some action.”
She also asked staff to keep in mind that in some parts of the city, larger trucks, such as FedEx trucks, sometimes have difficulty traveling through roundabouts.
Councilmember Corinna Contreras said this temporary roundabout will be the first in the city and asked city staff about the possibility of installing them elsewhere.
Atteberry said the temporary roundabouts are made of recycled, reusable materials. The one at Galbar Street will cost around $50,000, but costs for temporary roundabouts at other locations will likely vary.
Melendez asked whether city staff had considered implementing temporary roundabouts at all locations in the Emerald Drive plan. However, Principal Engineer Daniel Carns said this would cost more in the long run, as they would all eventually have to be removed.
Adding the temporary roundabout at Galbar Street, along with the other two permanent roundabouts, allows the city to maintain traffic safety at a minimum level until the rest of the project is completed, Carbs said.
Deputy Mayor Dan O’Donnell said he supported the phased approach, but did not want to see the city rely on temporary roundabouts as a band-aid to the larger issues.
