Turlock holding second meeting about West Main

Early plans the city is considering to improve traffic flow along West Main Street west of downtown will be made available for public comment at a second community meeting Tuesday evening in City Hall.

Staff used priorities expressed by around 40 residents at the first meeting in January to draft designs for the section of West Main Street between Lander Avenue and Highway 99. This next meeting will be to gather feedback on concrete ideas, with a goal of making a recommendation to the City Council on developing the West Main corridor.

“The improvement of the West Main Street corridor is critical to creating a safe, efficient and structurally sound entrance into our city. It’s clearly more than a beautification project, and I’m glad we’re moving this project forward with significant neighborhood input,” said Mayor Gary Soiseth.

The input from the last meeting included strong feelings from residents on the north side of Main Street for saving the 26-century-old sycamores outgrowing the street’s narrow park strips. Residents on the facing side said they would rather eliminate the falling branches, clogged sewer lines and cracked sidewalks that the three remaining trees on the south side of Main are causing.

The plans will likely all include closing some left-turn options now available in the dotted line of median strips between the highway and West Avenue South, senior civil engineer Nathan Bray said at the first meeting.

Brighter, more energy-efficient LED lighting, fresh paving and accessible sidewalks will be included in any street makeover, Bray said.

Residents also asked for better signage to guide newcomers into Turlock’s downtown area through the confusing array of turn lanes at Main and Lander.

All improvements will wait for funding, with construction envisioned three to four years from now, said Mike Pitcock, director of development services.

This story was originally published March 27, 2016 at 2:49 PM with the headline "Turlock holding second meeting about West Main."