City to hold March 5 meeting to get public’s input on Downtown Streetlight Project
VISALIA – The city of Visalia is looking for residents with bright ideas to improve downtown.
City staff will be holding a community workshop on Thursday, March 5 to provide the public an opportunity to learn about downtown lighting, the accompanying roadway construction, and give their thoughts on the design of the Downtown Streetlight Project.
“The project’s main objective is the replacement of the existing streetlight system to a more efficient system that meets the needs of the downtown area,” shares David Hernandez, City of Visalia Associate Engineer. “Given that downtown is a hub for the community, it’s important to us that we allow for public input on projects like this.”
The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. at the Visalia Convention Center, 303 E. Acequia St. in Visalia. The city council awarded the design of the project to Quad Knopf in Visalia for $407,098 in October. The project will repair or replace street lights from Willis Street to the west, Ben Maddox to the east, Oak Avenue to the north, and Mineral King to the south.
As part of the agreement, QK will conduct preliminary engineering at the onset of the project. During this phase, the QK team will analyze and evaluate different streetlight options, technologies, and associated matters to better assess alternatives and options for the City. The street light project is funded using Measure N funds with $2.25 million allocated in each year for a total project budget of $4.5 million.
“It’s helpful to receive public feedback on projects such as this, to gather insight as we proceed into engineering design. We hope that citizens, business owners and property owners join us,” adds Hernandez. “The meeting will include an overview of the project; we’ll dive into a few details; explain the process and timeline; and ask for feedback and answer questions.”
For questions on the Downtown Streetlight Public Meeting, contact David Hernandez, City of Visalia Associate Engineer, at [email protected] or (559) 713-4447.
During a work session in October 2018, staff began looking into other opportunities to make needed improvements in the downtown area. After meeting with Southern California Edison, California Water Service, CalTrans and Downtown Visalians, it was determined there was a need for pavement rehabilitation. The project would likely include Main Street from West Street to Garden Street, but QK will be evaluating all roadways within the streetlight project.
The pavement rehabilitation project will be funded using SB-1 funds originally budgeted in the city’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget which is approved as part of the two-year budget process. About half of the CIP budget, $1 million, will be used to cover the cost of the project.
