Written by Julie Farren, Reprinted from the Record Gazette
By: Libi Uremovic | Original Article at patch.com
The Beaumont City Council gave the go-ahead to continue work on the Potrero Interchange project in which the city has already invested $10 million.
The Potrero Interchange would connect to State Route 60 and south to Fourth Street in Beaumont.
The approval to go ahead with the project was on the consent calendar but Councilman Lloyd White requested to pull it for discussion as a separate item.
There were speakers for and against the project at the council meeting.
Community Development Analyst Kyle Warsinski said that the interchange would be located in a mixed-use development, meaning a commercial and industrial area.
Former Beaumont Mayor Jan Leja spoke at Tuesday night’s council meeting, saying that the project wasn’t designed for development, but to prevent horrendous accidents that have occurred at the State Route 60/Interstate 10 split.
Leja, who served as mayor in the 1990s, said that during her term in office, there was an accident involving a family traveling in two separate vehicles. The front van overturned and seven family members were killed.
Leja said the project became a safety issue in the beginning, but now it is a congestion issue.
Warsinski said that the interchange would eliminate cross-barrier traffic at the access opening and provide full access to the 60.
It also would relieve the congestion at the Interstate 10/Highway 79 interchange.
Since 2001, there have been more than 450 accidents along State Route 60. There have been 11 deaths and 259 injuries, he said.
As for development, approximately 2,000 acres of land are available for jobs in the proposed Foreign Trade Zone.
Bruce McDonald, who owns 150 acres south of the 60 freeway, said that area is zoned for a business park and he is working to bring Procter and Gamble to Beaumont with 500 jobs.
The total interchange project would cost $79 million. Phase one, which features building the overpass, would be $25 million. Phase two, which would be the on and off ramps, would be $54 million.
The planning and engineering budgets are $11 million.
Warsinski said the $10 million invested in the project so far has been centered on the interchange and the Fourth Street extension and Potrero extension.
There is $13.5 million in funding from the Riverside County Transportation Commission and federal money from Washington D.C. that has to be spent specifically for this project.
RCTC has funded $7.9 million and the federal funding is $5.6 million.
The city would lose the funding if it isn’t used, said Warsinski.
Councilmember Jeff Fox has been involved with the project for the past 14 years and said that the bypass is needed.
If anything happened to the infrastructure at the 10 and 60 interchange, the Pass area would be in trouble because they would lose access to other cities.
Fox said that too much time and money has been spent on this project and it needs to move forward.
Warsinski said that there would be a minimum of four lanes – two in each direction –on the interchange.
The first phase would be building the bridge and median improvements. That would take 12 to 18 months. Phase two would take the same amount of time.
Caltrans is involved in the design and oversight but is not providing any funding, said Warsinski.
The city’s share would be $15 million for phase one and $19 million for the second phase.
Warsinski said that the council will have to decide the remaining amount of funding.
What the council approved Tuesday night, by a 4-1 vote, with White against it, was going ahead with the progress report, which would require $819,856 in the remaining budget.
The approval means continuing the design and engineering work.
Councilmember Mark Orozco said the Potrero Interchange will help a lot of motorists and Mayor Pro-tem Mike Lara said that if the city has the opportunity to increase jobs in Beaumont, then they need to stand behind their work.
Lara said that one of his promises when running for city council was to create jobs.
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