By The Long Beach City Council will soon begin work on covering the large ditch along Atherton Street in order to make it safer for commuters.
The ditch, which is actually a drainage culvert, runs along Atherton Street, starting at the northeastern end adjacent to the Cal State Long Beach campus, and continues east to the Los Cerritos Channel.
Landscaping over the ditch, it’s hoped, will avoid traffic problems. At least one car fell into the ditch during the fall 2007 semester, according to City Traffic Engineer David Roseman.
The City Council recently approved a $1.2 million contract to remove the existing drain and replace it with an underground storm drain that will flow along the same route. The entire development is expected to be completed by early 2009.
The first phase of construction is expected to begin in March from the Los Cerritos Channel to Palo Verde Avenue, and will take approximately six months to complete.
The second phase will begin soon afterward, with construction from Palo Verde to the west end of the ditch.
The ditch will be filled in with a number of trees and plants that will prevent trash from collecting, while at the same time providing some greenery for the area. Covering the ditch will also help ensure the safety of commuters and pedestrians and clean up the area, according to Roseman.
“It’s definitely a safety hazard that needs to be fixed,” Roseman said. “Covering the ditch over is also going to make the area much more aesthetically pleasing.”
Project manager Robert Maldonado said he believes that the repair of the drain won’t affect traffic around the area, with the majority of construction taking place on the service road along Atherton.
“We’ll be using a number of traffic-control devices when construction gets under way, but we don’t anticipate that it will have much of an impact,” said Maldonado.
Roseman mirrored Maldonado’s statements, saying that the width of Atherton would mean little to no effect on traffic.
“From what I recall, Atherton Street is pretty wide,” Roseman said. “It may mean that the two lanes may be a little narrower, and we may have to close one lane for a day to pour concrete, but it won’t significantly negatively affect campus traffic.”
Fourth District Councilman Patrick O’Donnell said that it was terrific to finally see work beginning on the drain. O’Donnell himself lives in an area near the planned construction, and said he can relate to the needs of nearby residents.
“This has been 40 years in the making. It’s the last ditch remaining to be filled in,” O’Donnell said. “The long-term effect will mean we’ll have a better thoroughfare through that area.”
O’Donnell and Roseman both said that community support of the project has been excellent, with a number of neighborhood meetings having been called to discuss the issue.
Maldonado also praised the community for its support of the project, saying that it was “positive” and that “the community loves the idea of covering the channel.”
CSULB student reactions to the proposed construction were also supportive of the project.
Junior criminal justice major George Caingcoy said that the development would “be a good thing for the scenery.”
Undeclared freshman Ashley Smith also supported the plan, saying “if it’s beneficial to the community, then I’m all for it.”
Senior political science major Nick Hutchins, who drives past the ditch every day, said the development was good because it would “probably help the aesthetics of the area” and was “worth the money to do it.”
