$118 Million in Improvements OKd

The Ventura City Council supports spending money to renovate the historic Peirano’s market. All seven council members like the idea of installing public restrooms on south Seaward Avenue.

And the majority supports building a sound wall to shelter an east Ventura neighborhood from California 126 traffic noise.

The council has identified those projects and about 80 others as top priorities, and agreed to earmark $118 million over the next six years to pay for the improvements.

The decision came at the end of a marathon council meeting Monday night in which residents and business owners urged city leaders to set aside money in the capital improvement budget for their projects.

After four hours of quibbling and countless failed motions, the council approved a long list of projects now designated for city funding.

The list includes: $12.9 million for the extension of Olivas Park Drive to Johnson Drive; $13.1 million for citywide street repairs; $6.5 million for a secondary waste water treatment plant, $6.3 million for the replacement of water lines citywide, and $1.4 million for new traffic signals.

In addition to infrastructure improvements such as road and water projects, the council also set aside money for park-related projects, including $1.4 million for the design of an eastern Ventura park, $220,000 for a skateboarding park, and $1 million for the design and construction of the Ventura River Bike Trail.

The City Council agreed to allocate $500,000 for renovations to the Peirano’s Market on Main Street, $184,000 for restrooms on Seaward Avenue and as much as $3 million for a sound wall on Lafayette Street.

City officials said they were uncertain of the exact costs of the sound wall. Because it was a last-minute request, city planners said they had not designated a funding source. But they plan to come back to the council with recommendations next week.