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When Fairview Overcrossing was replaced in 1999, Cars Are Basic, Inc. ^TM suggested that Las Vegas Creek should be replaced since the adjacent median and shoulders were being excavated, because the Holiday Park Subdivision and other homes and businesses had been severely flooded due to inadequate capacity and maintenance of the creek. (Click for County Storm Drain Map.)

However the County ignored Cars Are Basic, Inc.^TM, stating that there were "No neighborhood complaints", and instead allowed 2 more major development projects to be built along the creek, without upgrading the creek or culverts during the $7+ Million Fairview Bridge project. (Click for hearing report.) Thus the major intersections and bike paths remain in a major flood zone, with easy access to the railroad, where people camp and get run over by trains.

Instead of listening to such warnings, the County held meetings with bicycle groups and other special interests, and redesigned the project and increased the cost of the bridges due to layout, sidewalk, bike lane and aesthetic changes. There is a suspected Chumash grave site under the railroad tracks, but no remains were reported during State-funded archeological surveys and monitoring by out-of-town "Archeology and Cultural Resources Management" consultants and "Archeological Monitoring Services" by the Indian Council.

As a result, the bridges were rebuilt only one-half at a time (almost doubling the cost) with the same offset curved configuration. The intersection at Northbound 101 continues to have the same inefficient design with long signal wait times and major traffic backups on at Calle Real, onto the bridges and sometimes onto the Northbound freeway. Because the Northbound On-Ramp design forces 4 lanes to merge into 2 lanes, this location is a site of frequent accidents. Instead of correcting the design, a camera was added, and it has been posted on radar and aircraft speed trap websites.

In October 2008, the City of Goleta sent a newsletter to some residents, which for some reason was still not available online as of the November 2008 election, that predicts flooding due to the Gap Fire.

The City newsletter shows a photo from 1995 when the Creek flooded Calle Real years before the Gap Fire, even entering an elevated office building, such that it had water damage, rot and had to be fumigated. Instead of promising proper drainage construction with the extra taxes that they are receiving, the newsletter recommends that residents get flood insurance! The newsletter states that, "Since early August (2008), the City of Goleta and Santa Barbara County Flood Control have been proactively inspecting and assessing bridges, culverts, channels, creeks and roads." Should not a City proactively inspect the bridges and roads even without disasters? What have they been doing with their funds?

In October 2008, Caltrans was seen working overtime to survey the area again. After 18 years of Measure D, the City, County and the State still can't get the job done, but want even more of your tax money.

Views expressed in this page are not necessarily those of anyone who is known by anyone associated with this webpage. Readers are encouraged to seek answers to the questions presented in the preceding discussion.