Relief Fast-Tracked for Drivers on 22

Targeting congestion on the long-neglected Garden Grove Freeway, transportation leaders Thursday accelerated plans to widen sections of the road, add carpool lanes and improve freeway connections at costs that could range from $438 million to $872 million.

At its most ambitious, the widening project could result in condemnation of roughly 200 homes and businesses along the right-of-way through the heart of Orange County. Less aggressive plans would cost half as much and affect far fewer properties. The project could be completed as early as 2006.

“This probably should have been done years ago,” said Jim Silva, a county supervisor and member of the Orange County Transportation Authority who has pushed the project. “It is time to take action on the 22. It’s like a parking lot out there.”

Voting Thursday, the 15-member OCTA board unanimously agreed to seek more than $200 million in transportation sales tax revenue to get the project underway.

Caltrans, which is OCTA’s partner in the project, has the final say in how ambitious the freeway work will be. Environmental studies are being prepared for all options, and public hearings will be scheduled.

Built in the mid-1960s, the Garden Grove Freeway is one of Orange County’s most snarled during rush hours. The congestion is especially severe at the notorious Orange Crush--where the highway meets the Santa Ana and Orange freeways.

Transportation officials say the Garden Grove has not had any major improvements since it was built and is the only freeway in the county lacking carpool lanes.

“It’s long overdue,” Caltrans spokeswoman Rose Melgoza said. “The demand now far exceeds the capacity. Traffic is expected to increase 20% on the highway by 2020. This will help meet that.”

OCTA has been considering several proposals for the freeway. They range from doing nothing beyond expanding bus service along the route to the massive, $872-million option, which calls for carpool lanes in both directions, auxiliary lanes and connectors to the Costa Mesa, San Diego, Santa Ana and San Gabriel River freeways. Under all the construction options, some homes and businesses abutting the freeway would be condemned.

A more moderate project calls for a single carpool lane in both directions as well as widening most of the route. OCTA officials estimate that would cost about $438 million. OCTA spokesman George Urch said that is the most likely option because there is enough money from the county’s Measure M sales tax revenue and state funds to do the job.

If Caltrans preferred the most expensive option, the additional money would have to be found elsewhere, Urch said.

Under all the construction options, the carpool lanes would extend from Valley View Street in Garden Grove to the Costa Mesa Freeway.

If carpool lanes and connectors are built, Caltrans would have to condemn dozens of homes, businesses and other properties along the right of way. The mid-scale project would affect 20 homes and 34 businesses, while the most expensive alternative would affect 200 homes and 68 businesses.

OCTA officials say, however, that the work will not affect neighborhoods at the west end of the freeway, where residents recently won a 35-year fight for sound walls. Construction on that long-awaited project has begun.

The least intrusive plan widening plan would mean condemning about 10 homes in Seal Beach, Garden Grove and Orange, news that caught some property owners by surprise Thursday.

Phil Reed said he was unaware that the fixer-upper he bought in Garden Grove two years ago was one of the properties that might be affected. Reed and his wife, who live in Huntington Beach, planned to move into the modest home after he finished remodeling.

“My old lady’s going to have a stroke,” said Reed, 51, who estimated that he has spent about $30,000 so far for new tile, carpeting, material and labor.

The OCTA board agreed Thursday to use a single contractor to do both engineering and construction. The approach, which has not been used for freeway construction elsewhere in the state, is believed to be a time- and money-saver.

“We are getting positioned so we can move on the project quickly,” said Art Leahy, OCTA’s chief executive. “Motorists strongly dislike being caught in congestion due to construction. Our goal is to get the construction started and finished as quickly as possible.”

OCTA officials said they hope to decide the scope of the project by February and award a contract by May 2003. Completion would be in June 2006, about three years ahead of previous time estimates.

While transportation leaders say widening the freeway is critical, not everyone is convinced.

Reed, the now-worried homeowner, said he had planned to add a duplex to the rear of his Trask Avenue property as a source of income. “This was supposed to be our retirement,” he said.

Down the street, Ron Steuber said that when he bought a 10,000-square-foot office building a dozen years ago, he called Caltrans to see if it had plans to widen or improve the freeway.

“They said no, but then again, that was 12 years ago,” said Steuber, 61, who runs a loan company out of the building. “I understand they have to do it. It’s progress. But I’m annoyed they haven’t notified anybody.”

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