City Council to consider speed limit changes, advance Canyon Country Community Center construction

Santa Clarita City Council is considering adopting a resolution to establish new speed limits. Cory Rubin/The Signal
Share on facebook
Share
Share on twitter
Tweet
Share on email
Email

After meeting with other officials to plan for the new budget earlier this week, the City Council will reconvene Tuesday to consider changes to the area’s speed limit signage, as well as discuss steps to advance the Canyon Country Community Center.

Residents will have to keep an eye on multiple speed limit signs located across Santa Clarita as changes to some may increase or decrease. At their regular meeting, the City Council will look into adopting a resolution establishing prima facie speed limits brought about by a state required study.

Should the City Council move forward with the adoption, the study “will establish the prima facie speed limits on nearly every major, secondary, and collector roadway within the city of Santa Clarita,” according to a city staff report.

Some streets listed on the report with a proposed decrease of 5 mph each, include parts of Copper Hill Drive, from 55 mph to 50 mph, and sections of Creekside Road from 35 mph to 30 mph. Those with a proposed increase, also of 5 mph, include Canyon View Drive, Lost Canyon Road and Alta Vista Avenue.

These proposed changes come from a citywide engineering and traffic survey study, performed in accordance with the provisions of the California Vehicle Code and as recommended by the California Department of Transportation Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

“(The study) is a requirement by state law,” said Mark Hunter, transportation planning analyst with the city. In order for local law enforcement to continue using radar and laser enforcement, a study is needed by the state, he said. This also means that without it, the Los Angeles County Superior Court will not uphold a speeding violation issued by the Sheriff’s Department.

Deputies would then have to use less-effective methods, such as pacing speeding drivers. The use of radar enforcement has proved to be a successful method of reducing collisions, which has dropped 14 percent in Santa Clarita and remains the lowest since 2001, said Hunter.

City Communications Manager Carrie Lujan said the takeaway of this study is to offer “safety for those traveling on our streets.”

Canyon Country Community Center

Also on Tuesday, the City Council will consider approving plans and specifications for phase one of the Canyon Country Community Center, which includes rough grading, improvements to the Mint Canyon Channel and storm drains and a stormwater infiltration system.

If approved, the construction contract would be awarded to Santa Ana-based company Sukut Construction for nearly $11 million.

Phase one construction is slated to commence this April, immediately followed by phase two construction, where the community center building, parking lots, walkways and landscape will be built.

Related To This Story

Latest NEWS