Council holds special meeting

On Thursday, June 29, Tehachapi City Council held a special meeting approving several redevelopment projects in Tehachapi.

Among them were two repavement projects on Valley Boulevard. A construction bid for the Valley Boulevard Road Resurfacing project was awarded to Griffith Construction and the city hopes to have a 0.3-mile portion of Valley Boulevard between Curry and Beech Streets repaved before the start of the 2023-24 school year. Permission to file for an allocation of Regional Surface Transportation Program Funds to repave Valley between Beech Street and Tucker Road was also granted. RSTP funds are allocated every other year, with the next allocation happening in 2025.

A Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program funds grant application was filed for an allotment to allow the construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Highline and Tucker roads. Highline Road has proven to be a dangerously high-speed area and the city hopes to greatly reduce traffic accidents and fatalities by forcing traffic to slow down for the roundabout. The city is also considering future roundabouts on Highline Road at Curry and Dennison streets in an effort to improve roadway safety.

One of the most exciting builds that the city continues to work on is the Valley Park Project. As of June 29, the city will be able to begin obtaining necessary park furnishings. During the review of this report, the council spent significant time discussing safety plans for the park. The Valley Park, which will corner a busy street, will feature a 5-side soccer field, or a smaller field designed for 5 players per team, that has been carefully planned with safety in mind. The soccer field will be located in the back of the park bordered by its own 10-foot-tall net walls to prevent balls from escaping the field and potentially rolling onto the street. There will be an additional 4-foot brick wall between the park and street to further protect children at play and landscaping inside the park along the streetside will further help discourage kids from running around too close to the park's edge.

In final news, the Tehachapi taxiway relocation construction bid has been awarded to the Miller Equipment Company, meaning the project will be underway soon.

The Tehachapi City Council meets on the first and third Monday of the month at 6 p.m. They are currently meeting at the Police Department Community Room, 220 W. C St.