City receives federal funds for Central Avenue widening
Bike lanes to be added along rural roadway
By Eliav Appelbaum eliav@theacorn.com

The city of Camarillo has been awarded $973,000 in federal funds for the Central Avenue widening project, which is expected to begin construction this summer.

Although Central Avenue begins at the 101 Freeway and continues into Oxnard, only a small portion of the street lies within city limits. Approximately a onethirdmile portion of the road will be widened to include proper bike lanes. Once construction begins, the project should take about nine months to complete.

"We've got these aging infrastructures, but they need to be improved," Camarillo City Councilmember Kevin Kildee said. "It's extremely expensive to do this, but it's a much-needed situation, too."

The county has already widened the rest of Central Avenue.

The federal funds originate from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation. The money is sent to the California Department of Transportation, which acts as an intermediary for Camarillo.

In addition to widening the road, the project also calls for drainage improvement.

The idea for such a project originated in 2001, but specific planning wasn't begun until 2004. Around that time, the Central Avenue project was "temporarily shelved," said Ken Matsuoka, principal engineer for Public Works. Part of the delay was due to an outside company, hired by the city, taking longer than anticipated to complete the architectural plans, Matsuoka said.

"We've finally got all the kinks worked out," he said. "Each project has its own challenges. This one had some challenges with some utilities and design elements. It was a whole bunch of little things."

The Central Avenue development will not be entirely funded by the federal government, however. Federal funds can only cover 88 percent of the project, which is expected to cost about $1.1 million. The city must chip in the rest of the money.

"It's a safety improvement and a bike lane improvement," Matsuoka said.

Camarillo Councilmember Jan McDonald was pleased to see federal government aid the project.

"More than just our residents use that road," she said. "We always enjoy federal funds helping fund a project like this."