Sign or monument is a must along 5 Freeway, Burbank officials say
The Burbank City Council is asking for some kind of sign to be placed along the Golden State (5) Freeway near the Burbank Boulevard bridge after Caltrans completes a project involving demolition of the existing bridge and construction of a new one.
Council members unanimously voted Tuesday to have city staff find a less expensive solution for a monument or art installation that would identify the city of Burbank as motorists drive through the community on the 5 Freeway.
The action was in response to city staff’s recommendation to not pursue additional aesthetic treatments after the freeway project is completed because of its high cost.
David Kriske, Burbank’s assistant community development director of transportation, said the price to have some kind of community identification or gateway monument at the Burbank Boulevard bridge would cost the city between $500,000 and $1 million, based on what other cities have paid for similar projects.
“I think it’s important to put something up that says, ‘Welcome to the city of Burbank, Media Capitol of the World,’” Councilman Bob Frutos said. “I’d like to see something go up there.”
Though council members will have to wait for city staff to bring forward less expensive options, Kriske said there are aesthetic improvements being made to sections of the 5 Freeway that showcase the city.
Some of the bridges that have been built incorporate images of the Verdugo Mountains, while the new Empire interchange, which is still under construction, will have images of Lockheed P-38 aircraft etched onto the retaining walls.
However, Kriske said there are some other aesthetic projects along the 5 Freeway, specifically on the side of the Metro railway grade-separation project, that need to be addressed.
There is about $2 million to $4 million worth of landscaping that should be planted along the railroad right-of-way, but it’s unfunded, Kriske said.
Caltrans is almost finished with its grade-separation project, but Kriske said the agency has provided little to no landscaping along the elevated portion of the railway that goes over North Buena Vista Street.
Additionally, Kriske said there are still mounds of track ballast and other debris from construction the agency has yet to clean up, possibly due to budget constraints.
“We’re getting some resistance and some communication from Caltrans that they may just leave it the way it is, and we think that’s unacceptable,” Kriske said. “So we’ve already rang the alarm bell with them to say, at a bare minimum, that they need to grade it a make it clean, so they leave it as close to [it was] when they arrived.”
Also during the meeting on Tuesday, the council directed city staff to find additional funding from Metro to address the landscaping issue.
anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com
Twitter: @acocarpio
