Carver Tract No Longer 'Where The Sidewalk Ends' In Coachella Valley

INDIO, CA —The community of the Carver Tract, a "county island" between the cities of Indio and Coachella, will finally have completed sidewalks throughout the 200-home neighborhood, says Supervisor V. Manuel Perez.

Funding for the sidewalk project was approved Wednesday, ensuring all of the community's sidewalks should be constructed and operable within "about a year," Perez said. Approximately $3.5 million in funds were allocated for the project from the Fourth District's share of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding in a measure that passed 4-0 by the county supervisors.

"Carver Tract has lacked sidewalks ever since its development right after World War II," Perez said. A series of sidewalks in Carver Tract has already been completed, with those being the first sidewalks ever in the community's history.

The county had already lined up funding for phase two of the sidewalks, but funding for the third and final phase was still years away from approval.

With this funding, Riverside County can now build phase two and phase three together to complete all the sidewalks and drainage improvements, according to Perez.

"Carver Tract is an area that's been unincorporated forever, an area that's been neglected for a very long time," said Supervisor Perez. "It's not in the City of Coachella, it's not in the City of Indio."

This is a small, older neighborhood that was not developed with this infrastructure, Perez said.

As their supervisor, he has long been involved with Carver Tract issues, including cleanups and the longstanding desire to add sidewalks and proper drainage to the aging community.

"The youth and the families there have never had sidewalks or any lighting," Perez said. "We're finally, through ARPA money, able to use that money for the right reasons to improve the quality of life for these individuals that deserve it, that deserved it, for generations. These are folks that are farmworkers, these are folks that are service workers, these are folks who deserve a better place to live, and I think that's our responsibility."

Construction for the last round of updates began in March 2022 and lasted well into the fall. During that time, new underground stormwater detention basins were added, and new asphalt was laid in addition to the curbed sidewalks until the completion of that phase in November. Riverside County Transportation Department shared its progress on street repairs and sidewalk updates.

The county is currently in the final design stage for the Carver Tract Sidewalk Safety Improvement Project Phase 2 and 3, which will be done as a single combined project with the added funds.

Construction is expected to start in the spring of 2024.