Fallbrook CPG backs MND for Sandia Creek Drive bridge

Joe Naiman

Village News Reporter

The Jan. 17 Fallbrook Community Planning Group meeting occurred during the public review period for the environmental Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Sandia Creek Drive bridge replacement project, and the planning group voted unanimously to recommend adoption of the MND.

“I think that a good general consensus has been reached,” planning group member Stephani Baxter, who chairs the planning group's Parks and Recreation Public Facilities Committee, said.

The actual purpose of the bridge replacement is to ensure migration of steelhead trout.

“It enhances a key wildlife corridor,” California Trout regional director Sandra Jacobson said.

California Trout, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to ensure that wild fish thrive in healthy waters. Grant funding has been obtained to replace the bridge, and California Trout worked with trails users and other community groups to ensure that the replacement would not have adverse impacts.

The existing box culvert crossing the Santa Margarita River is considered to be the top flooding site in San Diego County, and it will be replaced with a new steel bridge which is designed to withstand 100-year flood levels.

“The existing structure will remain open to traffic during construction,” Jacobson said.

The new bridge will have three sections, which will allow for pedestrian and bicycle travel as well as motor vehicle use. Two travel lanes 12 feet wide will be complemented by two eight-foot shoulder lanes on each side. The existing bridge accommodates between 1,000 and 2,000 cars per day. Santa Margarita Drive is also the entrance to the Santa Margarita trail which has approximately 100,000 visitors annually. A new approach road should alleviate traffic congestion.

“All the trail users can have safe passage,” Donna Gebhart, who chaired the Fallbrook Trails Council before she and her husband moved out of the area, said.

The mitigation measures include placing lighting for construction at the lowest possible elevation and having the lighting face downward. The MND identified 19 vegetation-related mitigation measures which will be implemented. The activity will include biological surveys, while construction will be avoided in areas with nesting birds. Temporary fencing will also be used to mitigate environmental impacts. A temporary trail during construction will avoid adverse impacts to recreational users.

The public review period began Jan. 6 and will conclude Feb. 4.

“Looking forward to this project,” planning group chair Eileen Delaney said.