Permanent Stop Signs Approved for 2 Locations

Rejecting a recommendation of the city staff, the City Council this week voted to install permanent all-way stop signs at two intersections on San Juan Creek Road.

The action came after citizens urged the council to keep the temporary signs that had been installed at Avenida La Mancha and Calle Cartagena, which is adjacent to Harold Ambuehl Elementary School.

Last November, the council approved the temporary installations after receiving requests from citizens concerned about safety.

Following a six-month evaluation, the city staff recommended removing the signs.

In their report, city officials said that no accidents had occurred at either location and that drivers were ignoring the signs, which were causing unnecessary delay. The report also said that most of the more than 200 residents who contacted the city about the stop signs opposed them.

But more than 40 citizens who supported the stop signs told the council Tuesday night that the signs help make the area safer for children and the entire community.

One resident, Lisa Guerrero, asked the council to keep the signs because they help protect her mother, a school crossing guard at Calle Cartagena for the past four years.

“I don’t want my mother to be road kill,” said Lisa, 13.