Highway 1 to get upgrades

The intersection will be reconfigured to eliminate a high-speed right turn from northbound Highway 1 and realign the intersection of Higgins Canyon Road, according to the report. New landscaped medians and adjustments in turning lanes will improve safety and aesthetics and the project will also install curved concrete entry structures welcoming people to the city and directing them to downtown.

Staff also recommended undergrounding overhead power lines around the intersection as part of the project since the road will be ripped open anyway. Doing so would improve aesthetics and could also limit the risk of wildfire in an area adjacent to grasslands, staff argued. 

The undergrounding of power lines is estimated to cost $383,338 and will be paid for by the city while Pacific Gas and Electric will complete the work. 

The entire project is expected to cost $4.1 million, with $3.2 million coming from Measure A, the countywide half-cent sales tax. 

During the meeting, the council unanimously signed off on the highway improvements part of the project, but not everyone was on board with the undergrounding of utilities.

Councilwoman Deborah Penrose felt the high cost of undergrounding power lines could not be justified for aesthetic reasons and felt nearby property owners should pitch in if mitigating wildfire risk is the reason for the project. She was also convinced that the city would ultimately be on the hook for much more than staff is estimating.

“I doubt seriously that PG&E will give us a break on anything. If we get into this project and find out gee whiz we’ve got a bunch of pipes under the road or a big hole someplace that needs to be filled the cost will go up,” she said, according to a video of the meeting. “I’m against the undergrounding part of the project.”

The council voted separately for the undergrounding proposal, which ultimately passed 4-1 with Penrose in opposition and Councilman Robert Brownstone voting in favor, but with reservations, he said. 

“Why are we spending [$383,338] on aesthetics when maybe we should be looking for lines that are more dangerous if we don’t underground them?” Brownstone asked. 

City Manager Bob Nisbet said cities typically underground power lines when the opportunity arises, as is the case with this project, and that it’s up to PG&E and not cities to upgrade electrical infrastructure.

“It’s not really the city’s responsibility to approach undergrounding from PG&E’s perspective,” he said. “The opportunity is there, now’s the time to do it, you’re ripping up the ground and if you don’t do it now you never will. That’s really it.”

Staff hopes to begin construction on the project in 2020.

Another phase of Highway 1 upgrades is in the works that will create a new signalized intersection at Terrace Avenue and Highway 1 and a bicycle and pedestrian path from Main Street to Spindrift Way, among other improvements.

zachary@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 102