After decades of deliberating and planning, the Union Valley Parkway project—a freeway interchange and extension running through Orcutt and Santa Maria—is finally becoming a reality.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved at its Oct. 27 meeting the portion of the project under county jurisdiction, giving the OK for phase one of development to begin.
The $36 million project is a joint effort among the county of Santa Barbara, city of Santa Maria, and Caltrans, with support from the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments.
“This project has been a long time in coming,” 5th District Supervisor Joe Centeno said during the meeting.
The new interchange and freeway extension, he said, would ease the traffic congestion on other freeway exits along Highway 101 and improve public safety.
Before voting, Centeno suggested the board encourage Caltrans to review the project’s construction plans to address concerns posed by residents living in the Orcutt area. Many people want more access to eastern portions of Orcutt and Santa Maria, while some residents have complained that planning for the project inadequately addressed noise and environmental concerns and other issues.
Prior to reaching the supervisors, the Union Valley Parkway project stalled at the city level when a nonprofit environmental group, Orcutt Citizens for Better Environment, sued the city of Santa Maria, claiming the project’s Environmental Impact Report failed to meet California Environmental Quality Act guidelines, among other things. That suit was recently dismissed.
The board, however, seemed ready to move the long-awaited project along.
“I’m sure you all know Orcutt really needs this, Santa Maria really needs this,” 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray said before motioning that the project be approved.
For more information about the Union Valley Parkway project, visit countyofsb.org.
This article appears in Oct 29 – Nov 4, 2009.
