Topics : ROADS : After 10 Years, Cities Agree to Fix Potholes in Shared Road

After more than a decade of disagreement, Sierra Madre and Arcadia have finally smoothed over their differences and resolved to repair pothole-laden Orange Grove Avenue, which borders the cities.

The avenue, a rustic country lane with no sidewalks, is a minefield of potholes and cracks waiting to jar any unsuspecting motorist driving from Michillinda Avenue to Rodeo Road.

A $2-million plan to repair the street cleared its final hurdle last month when the Sierra Madre City Council approved the project, which had been given the OK a week earlier by Arcadia council members.

“It took awhile, but the project had to be done properly with all residents agreeing to the construction,” said newly appointed City Administrator Sean Joyce.

The project began with power pole relocation last month and should be completed by the end of 1995, officials said.

Both cities had to agree to the repairs because the avenue is Sierra Madre’s on the north side and Arcadia’s on the south side.

Arcadia, a growth-oriented city with money in the bank for street improvements, had fought for years to repave the rustic avenue.

But Sierra Madre resisted its neighbor’s wishes. Residents feared that a repaving would turn the rustic roadway into another alternate for the Foothill (210) Freeway and require the removal of 97 trees.

Joyce said active traffic enforcement by both police departments will ensure that it does not become a high-speed route. As for the trees, he said, only one will be removed, and it will be replaced.