Ortega Highway Widening In OC Back On Track

Plans to widen Ortega Highway where it bottlenecks to two lanes in San Juan Capistrano are back on track.

At tonight’s San Juan Capistrano City Council meeting, the council is expected to approve hiring an engineering firm to come up with the plans and cost estimates for the widening project, which would address the .9-mile portion between Calle Entradero to the eastern city limits.

An earlier attempt to widen the highway where it meanders as a two-lane country road was thrown off track when homeowners in the Hunt Club and the city challenged the environmental documents in 2009. That dispute was settled in July 2011.

The city is calling upon HDR Engineering, which designed the county-portion of the widening, from the city limits east to Antonio Parkway. So far, the city has received a $1.05 million grant from the Orange County Transportation Authority and another $450,000 from the developer of Rancho Mission Viejo, according to a staff report.

The contract would cost $1.3 million, of which, $911,000 is the city’s portion. The rest is being picked up by the Ranch, the staff report says.

The next step is securing funds to buy the property the city needs to widen the road. That could cost more than $5 million, according to the staff report. The council is expected to direct staff to apply for more OCTA grant money, according to the staff report.

The council will meet at 6 tonight at City Hall, 32400 Paseo Adelanto in San Juan Capistrano. -- By Penny Arévalo