Road-Widening Project to Get a Closer Look

Complaints about the danger of a planned road-widening near Nyeland Acres are prompting county supervisors to consider stopping it for now.

Several Nyeland Acres residents told the Ventura County Board of Supervisors last week that plans to widen Santa Clara Avenue and a portion of Central Avenue would transform a rural two-lane road into a hazardous four-lane highway.

Critics are expected to return Tuesday, when the board is to vote on the $16.5-million project. At a hearing last week, several residents said it is already difficult to enter Santa Clara Avenue.

Supervisors John Flynn and Frank Schillo said Friday they are prepared to reject the project until it can be made safer. And Supervisor Judy Mikels said she is rethinking her position after hearing residents’ pleas.

“I was prepared to move along with it,” Mikels said. “But after hearing the testimony, I’m going to have to look at it a little closer.”

The other two supervisors, Steve Bennett and Kathy Long, were unavailable for comment.

Santa Clara and Central avenues connect motorists to highways in Oxnard, Camarillo, Ventura, Somis and Moorpark. They have been targeted for widening since 1988 as a result of increases in population and vehicle use.

Public works officials are asking supervisors to sign off on an environmental analysis of the project and approval to start work. The project involves widening Santa Clara from the Ventura Freeway 2.8 miles north to where it connects with California 118.

Central Avenue would be widened over a two-mile stretch from Camarillo city limits to the intersection with Santa Clara Avenue. County Transportation Director Butch Britt said traffic will become unacceptably heavy within 10 years if widening does not occur.

If approved, the $5-million first phase would include widening shoulders and improving the Central-Santa Clara intersection. It is unclear when funding would become available for the rest of the project, Britt said.

Residents of Somis also oppose the project, fearing it will be a steppingstone to expansion of California 118 near their homes.

Flynn, who attended a meeting in Nyeland Acres on Thursday, said the project should not be approved unless residents’ complaints are addressed. The project should be redesigned to include an access road, he said.

“When you try to back out, it is very difficult,” the Oxnard supervisor said. “It’s about 4 or 5 feet from the edge of property to the road.”

Schillo is also concerned about safety, he said. The project is not a top priority for the county, the Thousand Oaks supervisor said, adding that unincorporated areas of Newbury Park have more pressing road needs.

“We’ve got other places that are really suffering from not having our roads updated,” Schillo said.

Mikels said she wants Britt to outline changes that could make the project less hazardous. If that can be done, she may be willing to give the project her approval.

“If there are some changes that can be made to make the neighbors feel better, I am willing to look at that,” she said.