LAKEPORT >> The Lake County Board of Supervisors unanimously voiced their support for the development of a multi-use trail in Middletown.
If grant funding is approved, the trail will run from Central Park Road to the Twin Pine Casino and Hotel to provide a buffer from traffic and provide a facility that is comfortable for all users.
The support of the board will assist the Lake Area Planning Council (APC) in applying for funding from Caltrans.
District 5 Supervisor Rob Brown said he was concerned with spending money that could go toward road maintenance on the project.
“Is there a simpler way to do this, to accomplish the same thing, without taking badly needed money away from road projects?” Brown asked.
“I don’t believe that these funds can be used for something else,” District 1 Supervisor Jim Comstock said. “This money wasn’t going to go to roads”
Since the beginning of the Middletown Community Action Plan, it has been anticipated that Caltrans would be responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the trail, which will be used by pedestrians, bicyclists and equestrians.
“If the grant is awarded, Public Works would be the agency that creates the project and puts the plans together, I just can’t use road funds to maintain this,” Lake County Public Works Director Scott De Leon said. “So as long as we ensure that Caltrans is doing the maintenance on it, I’m supportive of the project.”
The development of a multi-use trail is a high priority identified in the Middletown Community Action Plan. The MCAP aims to address concerns such as safety, traffic congestion, as well as pedestrian and bicycle routes on the Highway 29 south corridor, which has had a history of crashes and collisions.
Brown cited the death of a bicyclist who veered into traffic on Highway 29 in Middletown.
“That may have been avoided with this trail, but this has been in planning long before that death,” Comstock said.
Improvements involving pedestrians, bicycles and traffic calming include colorized shoulders and lighted crosswalks, as well as installing radar feedback signs, roundabouts and traffic signals.
Contact J. W. Burch, IV at 900-2022.
