Ask TBC: What's delaying the Stockdale Highway roadwork?
| Wednesday, Feb 03 2010 01:46 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Feb 03 2010 01:54 PM
Q: Stockdale Highway had fast and furious construction for quite a while but halfway through the project we have not had work in over a month and traffic still backs up. There have been cones blocking off lanes west of California Avenue causing a bottleneck in an area that has had little or no work done to it. Between California and Real the roadbed has been repaired but the final surface is not finished, which causes bad puddling when it rains. In the same area there are numerous 4- to 6-inch dropoffs and breaks in the road that are almost like driving up a curb. What's the holdup with this project?
- Mark Bartlett
A: The project has been delayed due to the wet weather, said Bakersfield Construction Superintendent Rick Millwee. The city's now expecting the project to be completed in late March, weather permitting, he said.
Q: (The following is a letter to the editor we repurposed as an Ask TBC): It amazes me that The Californian has taken up the keep the Kern River flowing at all costs. Doesn't anyone at the paper realize that there are whole communities living up here that already depend on that same water in the Kern River Valley? Maybe you should see Lake Isabella more often to realize your noble actions would cause damage to our community so that the people downriver could get a better view on their way to work.
-- Steve Greenberg
A: We asked Florn Core, former water resources manager for the city of Bakersfield, about your concerns and this was his response:
The state board's decision will not have any effect on Lake Isabella levels. The water will continue to be released as it always has, based on each year's hydrology, wet or dry seasons. The issue is where the water is diverted and where it ends up on the valley floor.
In fact, if the city of Bakersfield prevails and the extra water is integrated into current city supplies, there is a possibility that more water may be stored in the reservoir over certain periods in the winter and spring. But again, overall, there will be no effect on Isabella levels due to the water-in-the-river program.
The current hot issue of the U.S. Army Corps' restriction on reservoir levels for the next seven or eight years (or until the remedy is in place), is the real limiter on how big the lake is, year 'round. Everyone should continue writing and communicatiing with Congressmen Kevin McCarthy and Jim Costa to keep the pressure on the Corps to fix the dam as quickly as possible.
Q: Who is responsible for maintaining neighborhood mailbox units? The CBU on Penryn, right by Windermere Park, has needed maintenance very badly for a couple of years now. It is not only peeling and rusted, but has had streaky blue paint poured over it, and is now further insulted with gang-type graffiti.
This is on a public un-gated street, and though it looks like something out of the movie "BladeRunner," it is in Seven Oaks! Our HOA community manager says maintenance is the responsibility of the U.S. Postal Service and that she has submitted requests for maintenance but that they are refusing to do it. My mail carrier also says he has submitted a request for maintenance.
The USPS website says responsibility for maintenance may or may not be that of the USPS. Can you please find out who is actually responsible to take care of this ongoing eyesore?
- Alexis L. Lukehart
A: Bakersfield Postmaster James Brouillard fielded this one Tuesday:
The mailbox in question was paid for and installed by private developers. Although it is not our box, we wanted to facilitate a resolution to this problem so we contacted Merit HOA. Without getting into details, someone from Merit will visit the site and remediate the box. I was told that this may occur today.
Ask The Californian appears on Mondays and Thursdays. Submit questions to asktbc@bakersfield.com or to The Bakersfield Californian, c/o Christine Bedell, P.O. Bin 440, Bakersfield, CA 93302.
