PG&E Stalls Roadwork Project at Sixth and O’Neill Avenues

The road reconstruction and sidewalk improvement project near the corner of Sixth and O’Neill avenues has been delayed due to a PG&E scheduling issue.

The utility company, which was relocating shallowly buried residential gas feeder lines, was called off the job last week to work on another project. The company told the city of Belmont they would be back, but so far no date has been set.

As part of the Redevelopment Agency’s downtown improvement project, the City knew they were dealing with the reconstruction of an old road. Streets and utility lines in that part of Belmont were put in 50 years ago.

According to city engineer Leticia Alvarez, “We knew there were a number of utilities in the area, but because it is an old road, you don’t always know how deep the utilities are.”

Alvarez explained that when the Public Works Department began the digging up the roads in July, they found PG&E and various telecommunications lines were buried much more shallowly than expected.

“We realize the road has been exposed longer than we had planned,” said Alvarez. “And we want to fix it before the rain starts, so if PG&E doesn’t finish the relocation work within a week or so, we’ll have to work around them, which not only will take longer to pave, it will cost more.”

According to Alvarez, the City understands the inconvenience the delayed project has caused businesses and residents in the area. “We are trying to mitigate it the best we can,” she added.

Delays in the project, which started in July, have caused businesses and homeowners in the area to become frustrated and concerned about the safety of gas lines in the area.

Gin Nikoloff, who owns the Beli Deli on Sixth Avenue and also lives on the property, said, “I wasn’t aware of it [the shallow pipelines], and I didn’t know the possible severity of the situation. It could impact my business, my employees, my livelihood and my home.”

Nikoloff’s business has been impacted by the road and sidewalk closures.

“It is a pain for my wonderful customers,” she said. “A lot of them bypass the sidewalk and road closure signs just to get to me. I had the city put up a sign saying 'Beli Deli Open,' because that wasn’t addressed in the beginning of the ‘100-day-project’.”

In a Sept. 6 letter to Public Works Director Afshi Oskoui and Community Development Director Carlos de Melo, Jack Turturici, of , outlined several concerns about the project.

In the letter, Turturici expressed that the city should have made more effort to ascertain which utilities were in the underground path of the proposed construction. He also listed several objections to the project including lack of driveway access for his tenants, lack of parking, and the narrowing of the street.

“When customers/clients do not have easy access, they take their business elsewhere,” he said in the letter.

In addition to improvements to road and sidewalk pavement, the project also provides traffic calming modifications for access to El Camino Real and Ralston Avenue.

City engineer Alvarez said that the city did go through the appropriate process in the design and implementation of the project, including community outreach meetings.

Alvarez was awaiting a call today from PG&E updating the status of the repairs. She hopes they will continue the relocation process this week.

“If PG&E can lower those lines this week, our crews can start laying down road next week. If not, our design consultants are working on alternatives. Either way, we plan on having some activity next week,” said Alvarez.