Santa Clarita Bridge Construction Backed
Santa Clarita transportation planners will recommend next week that the City Council approve building a bridge that has pitted two neighborhoods against each other, the city’s public works director said Tuesday.
City planners are still preparing recommendations on when and how the bridge would be built, Public Works Director John Medina said.
The proposed bridge would cross railroad tracks, San Fernando Road and the Santa Clara River to connect Wiley Canyon Road and Via Princessa.
Residents of the Circle J housing development say the bridge will provide a badly needed second access for their secluded neighborhood. But residents west of San Fernando Road say it will bring unwanted traffic into their area.
Representatives from both neighborhoods met with city officials Monday night in hopes of negotiating a compromise. But in the end, Medina said, Circle J residents still demanded the bridge. The other group still opposed it.
In a related development, Councilman Carl Boyer III has endorsed the bridge, calling it a necessary link in the city’s overall road system. But the city should first spend highway funds on building Rio Vista Road, a proposed north-south artery, before constructing the bridge, he said.
The council will consider the issue Tuesday.
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