ENCINITAS – Residents and local leaders joined in cutting the ribbon to celebrate the opening of the El Portal underpass in Old Encinitas over the weekend.
While elected officials addressed the audience, dozens of passengers squeezed through an Aug. 14 press conference — some marking their trip to the Leucadia Farmers Market on the east side of the crossing, others pulling towels on the west side — from the crossing. which was highly anticipated.
“Encinitas used to be very well connected,” said Planning Commission Chairman Kevin Doyle. “This is going to change everything. So many people have carried the ball so far for so long.”
Speakers included Mayor Catherine Blakespear, Assembly Member Tasha Boerner Horvath (D-Encinitas), Doyle, former Paul Ecke Middle School principal Adriana Chavarín-López and North County Transportation District representative Corinna Contreras.
All speakers at the weekend event congratulated the multi-agency effort to bring the new level crossing to pedestrians and cyclists near El Portal Street.
The total cost of the project is $13.4 million and it has been a community need for decades.
Planning for the El Portal underpass began in 2002 following a joint request by the city, NCTD, Caltrans, and SANDAG to the California Transportation Commission for additional pedestrian crossings as “illegal encroachment on the rail corridor became increasingly pervasive, ” according to the city. documents.
The need for safe crossings was further highlighted after school bus services were cut in 2003.
El Portal was identified as a separate railway crossing during an intensive public outreach process. In 2005, it was identified as one of the city’s “highest unfunded active transportation priorities” during its Let’s Move, Encinitas safe pedestrian walkways initiative in 2005. The El Portal crosswalk is part of the city’s broader effort to improve mobility throughout the city. Photo by Jacqueline Covey
The project did not receive funding until 2015 with the California Active Transportation Program. The previous year’s grant bid failed but it gained extra points after completing the city’s mobility plan in the past.
The El Portal subway is representative of the city’s efforts to reconnect pedestrian accessibility following significant transportation changes in the 50s and 60s, Doyle told the audience. It is also representative of community impact.
Agencies in the region were supported by the help of citizens throughout the process.
Visibly emotional during the event, Boerner Horvath drew a group of former AMP members from Paul Ecke Central Elementary School, which was part of a series of road safety improvements.
Boerner Horvath said it wasn’t a matter of if, but “when they were going to get hurt.”
“All of these people came and dedicated their time to asking for community improvements to leave a legacy for future generations,” said Boerner Horvath, whose sixth grader was not enrolled at Paul Ecke at the time of Boerner’s initial involvement. Horvath.
As of October 2015, the El Portal was estimated at $5,395,000. The Active Transportation grant provided 87%, or approximately $4.7 million, of the total and included a $704,000 commitment from the city.
Then in 2020 – with an approved budget of nearly $11 million – SANDAG came back to the city with a need for additional funding, bringing the total cost of the project to $13 386,456. (This amount includes pre-construction, public education and outreach costs.)
Granite Construction won the award with the lowest bid, not to exceed $7 million for the construction of the El Portal pedestrian crossing – higher than the initial engineer’s estimate of $5.2 million.
According to the city, funding did not affect city taxes, as it was primarily supported by money from the General Fund that could be used for this project.
Granite also received the construction of Leucadia Streetscape Segment A, which was built in conjunction with El Portal. The Strydlun connection has been the intention of the council since at least 2013.
In October 2020, it won the award for the first phase of the Leucadia Streetscape project which included improvements between Marcheta Street and Basil Street for more than $6.4 million, not to exceed $7,373,675. In March of this year, the Encinitas City Council approved a $100,000 increase to fund backup work, which included additional sidewalks and green bike lanes.
This project was also completed this summer and was funded using General Funds, a Transnet tax allocation, and a small amount of money from Proposition 84, according to city staff.
As part of its planning, the city planned the project in conjunction with Street View to ensure that access to beaches, schools, commercial areas and residential neighborhoods is improved upon completion of El Portal.
The city is looking to finish its efforts to drop a lane in both directions and add a green bike lane on North Coast Highway 101 between Basil Street and La Costa Avenue.
The prevention project was funded using General Funds and the SB 1 road repair allocation.
Segment B improvements, from Basil Street to Jupiter, are expected to cost about $20 million, and staff have not identified funding sources for the project. The city is working through its Street View phases as funds become available for various works.
The third part of Stage 1 of Streetscape will be advertised later this year, with restrictions expected to start in the spring.
In May, the city received a $20 million loan from California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank, or IBank, for improvements from Jupiter Street to La Costa Avenue.
