Closures And The 19th Street Bridge, Again
OK, folks... we're getting closer to Christmas and the news is slowing down..CITY HALL HOLIDAY CLOSURES
Today Bill Lobdell, who is still Interim Communication Director for the City of Costa Mesa, sent a little love note out to let us know that City Hall will be closed from December 26th through January 2nd. He also advised that there will be a small number of
employees on duty to handle any maintenance issues. I wrote back and told him I have his cell number, so I'll be able to call him to have a park toilet plunged or a tree pruned, if necessary.OTHER CLOSURES
He also advised that the Neighborhood Community Center, Downtown Recreation Center and Balearic Community Center will be closed, and that there will be no street sweeping next week.
DAILY PILOT 19TH STREET BRIDGE ARTICLE
You recall my previous post about the meeting in Huntington Beach on January 5th at which Supervisor John Moorlach will apparently lead the discussion of a possible 19th Street Bridge over the Santa Ana River to Huntington Beach. Well, the Daily Pilot wrote about it, too, and it generated a growing storm of discontent in the comments that were attached. Then the computer system that manages that stuff for them apparently had a seizure because the date line on the article was OCTOBER 1st and all the comments posted carried OCTOBER dates... too strange. Then, apparently in the process of correcting this problem the entire article, which appeared HERE, just disappeared! Not to worry. We here at A Bubbling Cauldron are at your service. Here, for your reading pleasure, are all the comments that had accumulated the last time I saw this article: (Note: there's more fun at the end)--BRIDGE for SALE-- Includes views of California Gnatcatcher habitat and sports park. Must sell before November 2012, so Willing to Deal! Contact Seller Directly. ***Available only to buyers outside NB Council District 2.
I hate to double post,but this just pisses me off so much. A quick glance at a map will show anyone with a brain how stupid this idea is. Bushard f-ing ends at Magnolia on the H.B. side so to go into downtown H.B. you'll still need to go down Brookhurst to PCH or up to Atlanta. Anyone coming into C.M. from H.B. isn't going to either come up from PCH to Magnolia, or down from Hamilton to this ridiculous bridge when it's faster to take Victoria or Adams in and shoot down Placentia or Harbor. The only folks whom this would impact are those on Bushard who don't even want it. It's our very own bridge to f-ing nowhere. This is just as asinine as the proposal to connect 19th to PCH, when there are easy routes already available. Quit trying to line your pockets with developer money while screwing over your constituents, and quit supporting this ridiculous Banning Ranch proposal that benefits the rich few while destroying a natural resource that belongs to everyone. The whole damn world doesn't need to be covered in crappy condos.
RRRRRRIgheimer..........doesn't live on the westside. Westsiders ride their bikes to the beach.....and we like not having the unnecessary traffic.This is what happens, when you elect a developer and NOT a Costa Mesan.
F the bridge and F Righeimer. That guy will sell out Costa Mesa faster than you can say the fairgrounds. Costa Mesa doesn't need more traffic. Huntington Beach and Newport Beach already cut through our city enough.
Costa Mesa Council members that support the 19th St bridge need to go.
I'm sure this whole scheme was dredged up again by the king of corruption Jim Righeimer. Nobody in Costa Mesa wants this to happen, it's a horrible idea and always has been. That being said, since Righeimer has only HIS interests at stake and cares nothing about the city or it's residents we should be very worried.
Another publicity stunt to benefit the worst councilman the city has ever been infected with.
Newport Beach Councilmember Steve Rosansky is another blowhard from Newport Beach trying to tell us what to do in Costa Mesa. Hey Rosansky, put a sock in it!
It's not just us Westsiders that should be up in arms over this. Anyone who lives along 19th east of Newport should be pretty upset about this as well since this will create a straight shot all the way to Dover. That stretch of 19th is already plenty busy enough.
It would increase traffic for Newport Blvd. and 19th street too which is already maxed out. Last I checked East Siders don't want more traffic either.
Deja Vu at 3:32 PM October 1, 2011Just like a bad penny, this bad idea keeps coming back.
Just suppose there was enough money to optimize. What might it look like?
(Keep in mind the crucial requirements and constraints:
- Newport wants to get commuter traffic off “its” stretch of PCH between Dover and the city limits with HB);
- Costa Mesa wants its downtown back;
- Eastsiders and Westsiders are adamantly opposed to commuter traffic through their neighborhoods;
- Eastside HBers don’t want commuter traffic going through their neighborhoods either;
- Bever wants less commute traffic on “his” street, W. Victoria;
- Righeimer wants to have major infrastructure projects on his political cv;
- many, many people don’t want sensitive environments between the bluffs and river messed with.)
Summary: put everything under ground. Three tunnels splitting off from the end of the surface freeway at 19th:
- one that goes straight under downtown and emerges at about 16th (already under study);
- a second one that heads west under 19th, under the river, emerging at PCH and Brookhurst;
- a third one that heads east to emerge at Dover and PCH.
Everybody goes away happy!
Money to pay for it? Hey, our developer leaders can show their stuff by finding financial angels.
This is just another example of how Jim Righeimer is the worst Councilmember ever!! If he wants the bridge, go put it down his neighborhood off Gisler right in Mesa Verde. Lets see how popular he becomes.
On the other hand this is the perfect issue for the entire city to see just how horable he really is. Righeimers new election words are -
"Vote for me, I will fire the entire Police Department, outsource the City to any low bid contractor (his friends) , wast your tax dollars on a worthless bridge, and slurry your streets, and by the way I dont even own a home here".
This man has only been in the city for less then 5 years and he has all but destroyed the city. He posts signs all around Mesa Verde talking about "you tax dollars at work" These are Measure M funds and he wants to take the credit. Jim and his fat texting friend need to be recalled.
If this is the best the the GOP has to offer, then we are in trouble.
After we build the bridge, we should start work on doubling the capacity of the 55, and extend it all the way to Balboa. Then, we should build a bridge over the Back Bay. I'm thinking some kind of feeder straight to Fashion Island. Once that's done, maybe we can pay for full-time science teachers. But ONLY if I get tax cut; I needs a new boat!
Elected officials... So not that corrupt slime ball appointee Mesdinger, right?
As much as I love the OCGOP and appreciate the recent efforts of council, this bridge is a bad idea. I would love for it to be forced on Gericault with noise 24/7 as payback for his constant noise but would not wish it on the other people, the normal ones, who live there. Building new roads or widening existing ones does not work here in the beach area. They will ALL fill up. The best solution is actually slowing things down by constricting flow, then they go elsewhere. Hate to see this but at least if it does happen it will happen to Gericault but major disappointment has and will continue to flow his way (bad karma) so this is overkill.
This bridge would cut through a great ecological enviroment that stretches alont the santa ana river, and add too much traffic to an already busy 19th street. Also, it would add too many crowds to my favorite taco joint on the corner of 19th and monrovia!! If Rosanski and Righeimer want to get to HB, they just have to drive one street down to Victoria/ Hamilton, lazy asses!
The proposed bridge will cross the northern 1/3 of the Sanitation District's 100-acre Plant 2 in Huntington Beach, one of its wastewater treatment plants. The Sanitation District secured this site (and a 2nd 100 acre site in Fountain Valley) over 60 years ago to provide wastewater treatment and later water reclamation. That foresight has provided the northwestern half of OC with the ability to build families and businesses while simultaneously protecting public health and our ocean. Since the early 70s, the Orange County Water District has built three world-famous water reclamation plants on portions of the Fountain Valley property. Eventually, water reclamation plants may be built in Huntington Beach.
Today, the Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley sites serve the long-term needs of over 2 million people. How many will they serve 60 years from now? Imagine the impact of a roadway and bridge crossing this vital piece of OC infrastructure. The portion of the 100 acres we are talking about is vacant land now, held in reserve for, well, forever. More families, more businesses, more wastewater and more reclaimed water are eventually in our collective futures.
Business and environmental leaders take note. Do we exchange the necessity of long-term regional needs for local traffic convenience? Do we?
Blake Anderson, Retired General Manager, Orange County Sanitation District
More cars will not make our city nicer or more livable.
I live several blocks away from 19th street. The bridge was a bad idea last time it was brought up and guess what? It still is a bad idea!
Developers may see $$$ building this albatross but residents dont want it. Costa Mesa City council do the right thing and listen to city residents. Either way, we will remember the decisions made now come next election.
I have lived here for 20 years and this bad bridge idea comes up every few years. 19th Street is already backed up at Harbor/Newport Blvd/55. It will not help anyone in Costa Mesa. Traffic will be going to 18th, 17th, 16th, etc to get out of the traffic jam. It will not keep traffic off Victoria, and it will ruin the bike trail view. I don't have a problem discussing it, but I think the answer should still be no to the bridge. I think we should vote it down and not allow it to rear its ugly head for another 5 years.
STOP THESE TERRIBLE COMMENTS AT ONCE! THE RIGGMARSHAL WANTS A BRIDGE AND YOU WILL SHUT UP AND BUILD IT! USE YOUR KIDS' COLLEGE MONEY TO FUND IT! NOBODY DENIES DAS RIGGMARSHAL HIS WISHES!
The bridge will end up being ANOTHER "pass through" Costa Mesa 'til I get to the 55 route. Take a look at eastbound Victoria at the 55 at the morning commute.
Hey Riggy and Morelick,,,what's in it for Costa Mesa RESIDENTS? (read OWNERS not RENTERS) RENTERS don't have quite as much at stake, eh?
These talks are long overdue - Costa Mesa needs to work with its neighbors to determine the fate of the Santa Ana River Crossings once and for all. This has been a contentious issue for at least 20 years. Simply wishing that the bridges will never be built will not erase them from the County Master Plan of Arterial Highways (http://www.octa.net/pdf/mpah2010.pdf). As evidenced by the attempts to remove the Gisler bridge, resulting in an MOU between the cities of Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach and OCTA - we cannot unilaterally decide. Despite concerted efforts by Costa Mesa, the MOU did not remove the Gisler bridge, only changed the classification to "Right-of-Way Reserve." As long as the bridges are on the MPAH, they are still on the table.
I'm not clear. Exactly WHY does the area need this bridge? I live in Newport. On the rare occasion that I go to Wal-Mart or some place in HB I make the pleasant drive up PCH, or else over the Victoria or Adams Bridge. I've never encountered a traffic back-up. So why another bridge other than as a way for a few beach area HB residents to reach the 55 a bit quicker?
The article, 19th Street Bridge talks revived, states that about 5 years ago the cities agreed to "hold off on the Gisler Bridge". Actually what happened was that in 1993 an effort was made to build bridges across the Santa Ana River connecting Garfield with Gisler and connecting Banning with 19th Street. Traffic personnel from the four cities involved, county officials who were in charge of the Master Plan of Arterial Highways (MPAH), and citizen representatives met for many months to determine improvements needed to provide for the area’s traffic without the two bridges. This group met for many months approving roadway improvements along the way. When the County of Orange went bankrupt OCTA took over the MPAH.
The plan was for future traffic without either bridge was completed. OCTA then determined that all parties had to agree or the plan would not be adopted. Neither Fountain Valley nor Newport Beach would agree. OCTA quietly, without any public discussion, allowed all of the months of effort to come to naught. The cities did not agree to “hold off on the Gisler Bridge”.
A left turn lane was added on southbound Brookhurst to Victoria to move traffic through that intersection. That was done with a brush and a small can of white paint. Someone should get Moorlach a brush and a can of white paint.
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A LITTLE CHRISTMAS CHEER FOR YOU
And now I leave you today with another little YouTube Christmas clip. This one is dedicated to our own municipal Scrooges, Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer and rookie non-elected councilman, Steve Mensinger. Enjoy the timeless talent of Dawes Butler and Stan Freberg - hit it, boys...
Labels: 19th Street Bridge, Bill Lobdell, Christmas, Jim Righeimer, Steve Mensinger
posted by The Pot Stirrer at 12/22/2011 12:39:00 PM
Why bring this turkey of an idea back? It's not remotely affordable, it's not remotely needed and even if it was there's the cost/benefit analysis. It will undoubtedly spawn a legion of lawsuits as folks quite rightly scream bloody murder when they get imminent domained out of their homes. This is just more back room maneuvering to force acceptance of the Banning Ranch development. It's only a f-ing quarter mile up to Hamilton/Victoria which isn't exactly bumper to bumper with traffic. Someone is getting some developer kickbacks methinks