By Brian Park
The San Juan Capistrano Chamber of Commerce has asked the city to consider temporarily opening the El Horno Street undercrossing during Caltrans’ Interstate 5/Ortega Highway Interchange project. Photo by Brian Park
With Caltrans expected to begin major construction on the Interstate 5/Ortega Highway Interchange project this month, the San Juan Capistrano Chamber of Commerce has asked the city to consider temporarily opening the El Horno Street undercrossing to vehicle traffic for travel between the eastern and western parts of town.
In a letter addressed to the City Council on Thursday, February 7, Mark Bodenhamer, president and CEO of the Chamber, wrote, “Until its completion, this project will have tremendous negative impacts on our residents and businesses throughout its multi-year timeline … El Horno Street is the only realistic alternative we have to alleviate the east-west connection shortage that will be caused by this project.”
Caltrans’ $86.2-million project will completely rebuild the Ortega Highway bridge over I-5, construct a new northbound loop on-ramp, reconfigure the northern portion of Del Obispo Street leading to the bridge and apply several changes to existing on- and off-ramps. The project is expected to be completed in the spring of 2015.
According to Caltrans officials, most construction work will be limited to early morning hours. Nighttime closures will take place from midnight to 5 a.m. on weekdays and midnight to 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. on weekends.
Additionally, the northbound I-5 off-ramp at Ortega Highway will be closed for three weeks; the southbound I-5 on-ramp at Ortega Highway will be closed for six weeks; Ortega Highway between the southbound I-5 ramps and Del Obispo Street will be closed for three weeks; and Ortega Highway between Del Obispo Street and El Camino Real will be closed for four weeks.
Caltrans has worked with the city to establish detour routes during construction. Suggested detour routes include Rancho Viejo Road, San Juan Creek Road/Valle Road, La Novia Avenue, Camino Capistrano and Del Obispo Street. Motorists can also use Junipero Serra Road to the north.
From the west, El Horno Street starts at El Camino Real, travels underneath I-5 and stops just short of Rancho Viejo Road, near the north end of Marbella Plaza. The street is closed to vehicular traffic, although pedestrians regularly use the undercrossing.
The undercrossing was built in 1958, but city officials are not sure of its original intent, according to Cathy Salcedo, the city’s executive services manager. Salcedo added that the undercrossing was built before Rancho Viejo Road.
Salcedo also said the roadway is not wide enough to handle two-way traffic and is only opened for emergency access and special occasions.
The El Horno Street Undercrossing looking east toward its terminus near Rancho Viejo Road. Photo by Brian Park
El Horno Street also runs through the Mission Flats neighborhood, the city’s second oldest residential area, after the Los Rios Historic District, according to Salcedo. The surrounding neighborhood also includes the San Juan Capistrano Public Library, San Juan Elementary to the south, Junipero Serra High School to the west, as well as the Chamber of Commerce’s office on La Matanza Street.
In his letter, Bodenhamer suggests the city work with residents and stakeholders to discuss “a mutually agreeable plan” to open the road.
“We recognize there are new issues that would arise from opening El Horno,” Bodenhamer wrote. “The preservation of the unique ‘feel’ of this neighborhood and safety of the residents (particularly the children) are important factors that should be considered as part of this discussion.”
Please open the road, and do it right. We need to have this vital street open to save the business on the inland side of the freeway.
I can’t think of a bigger disaster than opening El Horno Street. The street is a narrow 2 lane road without any sidewalks. There’s a preschool on this street so there’s small children traversing this street. This street was buils a long time ago & isn’t nearly large enough to handle the amount of traffic that will be traversing El Horno at God only knows what speeds. We don’t have enough deputies to control speeding in Capo as it is without adding this street to the mix. This would be a potentially catastrophic mistake by the City Council. Once El Horno would be opened who’s to say it will be closed? The same people may not be sitting on the dais when construction is completed.
Hey Matt, the city needs this street open to save the town. The street IS wide enough for any vehicle to get through. It was paved by CalTrans when the freeway was built. There are kids and schools on many streets, but we still allow cars on those streets. People speed on many residential streets, and many more people drive at safe speeds. Your reasons are without merit. Lets open the street to keep San Juan open during the construction, and hopefully forever.
Bill you must live on the east side of the freeway. El Horno is a small residential street & it’s not designed for the amount of traffic that will use it during the interchange project. How many of the streets you’re referring to don’t have sidewalks? El Horno is so narrow that if there are cars parked on both sides of the street only 1 vehicle is able to make it down the street. As for “saving the town” I just don’t think keeping El Horno closed is going to be the demise of Capo as we know it. This interchange project is going to be difficult for everyone to live with, but that’s just the way it’s going to be until the bridge is rebuilt. We’re all just going to have to live with it.
Absolute disaster if they open the narrow street of El Horno!
I guess if you don’t have friends or loved ones on that street that you won’t care.
Who cares if a child gets hit and killed on the narrow and once quiet street! That’s business right?! Safety last!
Bill, I don’t know where you got your information on El Horno St. That street was paved a long time befroe the Freeway came through in 1958. I know I was here.
Both Ben & Matt are the normal not in my neighborhood residents in San Juan. Yes I am on the “other” side of the freeway, but why should that matter. If we need to do something good for ALL of the city, taking sides should not matter. Many streets are narrow, but people still drive on them. We need to open this street so we can save lives if people get ill on the “other side”, and open the street so people on BOTH sides can do business on BOTH sides of the freeway. This small thinking can and will continue to kill business in our city. Sad but take a look at the empty business locations in SJC. Cutting the city in half will cause many more vacant locations. This is lives as well.
Hey Bill,
As a lifetime resident of Capo ALL of town is in my neighborhood.
The planned routes to be used during the times the bridge will be closed are more than adequate for people to traverse from the East Side to the West Side & vice versa. People are just going to have to give themselves more time to make these trips until the bridge is completed. This isn’t going to be the end of the world for businesses in Capo.