Newport Road Realignment Update
by Steve
10/13/2008 02:39:00 PM
I got some more information on the Newport Road realignment project after speaking with George Wentz, our city manager.
Wenzt has been talking with Juan Perez with the county transportation department, and with the developer of Audie Murphy Ranch to come up with a way to improve traffic flow along Newport Rd and Goetz Rd, at least on temporary basis.
Refer to the diagram below.
Click to see larger image (opens new window)The plan works like this...
- The existing Newport Rd will be renamed to Normandy Road, and will run both ways, eastbound and westbound.
- The realigned portion of Newport Rd will run one-way, heading eastbound. If you're coming from the I-15, you can take this road into Menifee.
- The Goetz Rd bridge will only accomodate southbound traffic. It will no longer support northbound traffic. This is because in order to open up the realigned Newport Rd, the bridge would have to be totally rebuilt, and there isn't enough money for that right now.
- The existing Goetz Rd will run southbound from Normandy Rd to the realigned Newport Rd. However, it will run northbound only from the Canyon Lake East Gate on up.
- Normandy Rd will end at Berea Rd. You'll have to jump on Berea Rd, and then turn on the realigned Newport Rd to get into Menifee.
Wentz said they are working a revised plan that will actually extend Normandy Rd into the realigned Newport Rd, so that we won't have to take Berea Rd. But this isn't final.
Apparently, the city has enough TUMF funds to put this "temporary solution" in place, and therefore, is moving forward on it. At very earliest, we might see this in place within six months.
If put in place, it will remain that way for about 2 or 3 years, maybe even longer, at least until the city collects enough money to make all roads bidirectional, or if the developer decides Audie Murphy Ranch is economically feasible to continue building.
Since this plan only makes the realigned Newport Rd one-way, I asked Wentz why not just leave the existing traffic flow untouched as it is now, until they have the money to make it bidirectional. He said that he thinks this temporary plan illustrated above will actually improve traffic from what we have now.
I think for most of Menifee, this plan will work fine, except for those people who live in the Menifee Hills development (off of La Ladera Rd). For them, if they're coming from the I-15, they won't be able to take Goetz Rd to Normandy Rd. Instead, they'll have to take realigned Newport Rd to Berea Rd, and head west on Normandy Rd. It's more of a pain, but not still not a long drive.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Goetz-Road, Newport-Road
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What Will Menifee Do With Audie Murphy Ranch?
by Steve
7/01/2008 02:36:00 PM
The last month, an anonymous commenter was
updating us with his/her correspondence with the County on the Newport Rd realignment. The last comment stated what many of us had heard, that Audie Murphy Homes, LLC has abandoned the project and walked away from it.
Last week, the Friday Flyer, a newspaper in Canyon Lake,
confirmed it......the developers of Audie Murphy Ranch have pulled out of the project due to financial reasons and will not complete the remainder of the road improvements required by the county, leaving realigned Newport Rd. approximately 80 percent complete and unable to be opened in its current state.
So what will the new City of Menifee do about this?
We still want the Newport Rd realignment.
I don't think Menifee has the money for this. Neither does Canyon Lake. We were counting on the developer to pay for it.
I wonder if there's a way to get Measure A funds from the State.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Newport-Road
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Schedule to begin Goetz bridge construction revised again..
by Holly
3/10/2008 09:16:00 AM
Developers for the Audie Murphy Ranch project have again had to revise the date to begin construction of the bridge on Goetz Rd., moving it out to the beginning of June at the earliest because of requirements by a local water utility.
According to Dennis Chapman of Brookfield Homes, one of the two developers behind the project, the latest delay is the result of a requirement to relocate two Eastern Municipal Water District reclaimed water lines.The lines are constructed of a special material and, unfortunately, the turn-around time for delivery is about three months out, says Dennis.
The requirement came near the end of the approval process, catching developers somewhat by surprise. Dennis explains that, before any other work can take place, the lines must first be relocated; so the decision to postpone the work until June was made.
It is estimated that Goetz Rd. will be impacted for approximately one year while the road is widened to four lanes and a bridge is constructed to help alleviate flooding. Dennis indicated that as part of their permit approval, the County of Riverside also required them to submit a construction timetable, with financial penalties assessed for delays in completing the work as scheduled.
To read more of this go to http://www.thefridayflyer.com/FF-2008-2-29/FFS-8801.htm
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Goetz-Road
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Newport Road Alignment Update
by Steve
10/05/2007 12:34:00 AM
Originally we said that the realigned Newport Rd was to open around the end of August, and here we are in October and it still hasn't happened.
The delay is due to a utility pole sitting in the middle of the gutter. You can see this pole on the side where WalGreens is. They can't open up this road until they move the utility pole. I don't know when that's going to happen.
Meanwhile, the Friday Flyer reports today that the planned closure of Goetz Rd has been moved back until Spring of 2008. This closure was scheduled to construct a new bridge over Salt Creek, right where it spills into Canyon Lake...
The revised schedule will allow for the full opening of all lanes on realigned Newport Rd. prior to any work beginning on Goetz Rd. It is estimated that Goetz Rd. will be impacted for approximately one year while a bridge is constructed to help alleviate flooding. However with all lanes open on Newport Rd., the work will require only a detour and not a full closure, according to Dennis Chapman of Brookfield Homes, one of two developers for the Audie Murphy Ranch project.
Read the full article...
http://www.thefridayflyer.com/FF-2007-10-5/FFS-7829.htmLabels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Goetz-Road, Newport-Road
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When Will the Newport Road Realignment Open?
by Steve
8/02/2007 10:43:00 PM
The word I'm getting is that the realigned Newport Road is still on schedule to open THIS month, but towards the end.
This is according to a friend of mine who's doing construction work at the site.
He also provided this photo for me...
This is looking down Newport Road towards the west (towards Canyon Lake), and taken from the intersection of Newport Road and Berea Road. I'm not sure if Berea Road will still be called that within Audie Murphy Ranch.
However, when the realigned Newport Road opens this month, it won't be 100% open. That is, only the southern half of the lanes will be open. The realigned Newport Road is supposed to have four lanes, two going west, and two going east. When it opens, only the eastbound lanes will be open. But that doesn't mean you can only drive east. They'll split it into westbound and eastbound, one lane each way. It'll take awhile longer until they open the full Newport Road.
The reason for only opening the eastbound half, is because crews still need to use the westbound half for heavy equipment, as they still have to create pads on that side of the road.
At the time this photograph was taken (August 1), crews were still laying gravel on the road. The gravel comes from the boulders they had to dig out of the fields. They have a rock crusher back in there.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Newport-Road
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Newport Road Realignment Pushed Back to August
by Steve
6/05/2007 09:36:00 PM
A week ago, I posted a notice that the eastbound lanes of the realigned Newport Road will open up this July.
A source of mine who's working in the Audie Murphy Ranch project assures me it won't happen at least until August.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Newport-Road
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Newport Road Realignment Update
by Steve
5/31/2007 09:38:00 PM
The Friday Flyer published an update on the Newport Road realignment project today, stating that the eastbound lanes of the realigned portion will open in July, while the westbound lanes won't open until December...
The work, which consists of widening the road to four lanes – two in each direction – as well as realigning it to sweep around and connect with Railroad Canyon Rd. to eliminate the bottleneck at Goetz Rd., is part of several area infrastructure improvements required to be completed by the project's developers. Work began in early 2006 and initially was due to be completed by the end of that year; however, a number of unforeseen engineering problems arose which delayed the project.
Read the full article here...
http://www.thefridayflyer.com/FF-2007-6-1/FFS-6894.htmThe article also mentions the Pechanga indians being granted some land in Audie Murphy Ranch. One of the guys who is working on the project out there mentioned to me that the archaeologist who studied the area prior to construction discovered several more artifacts in the areas slated for construction. When the Pechangas got word of this, they wanted those additional portions of land granted to them, or else they'd threaten to litigate the entire Audie Murphy project. That land was granted to them; I don't know if it was given to them for free, or if they bought it. Either way, the developers had to give it up.
That's just what I was told by a construction guy working out there.
If the Pechangas have the right to take land away from a private owner, just because their ancestors had ground some corn there, then they have the ability to take my land away also, if I find some Pechanga artifacts.
That's a disturbing thought.
I realize that the ancestors of these Pechangas had land taken away from them back in the 1800s and early 1900s. But then, it wasn't me who took that land from them. And, none of the living Pechangas today had land taken from them.
If any one of us sympathizes for the Pechanga people, then why don't you just donate your land to them right now, and put your conscience to rest? More than likely they lived on it at some point.
Would love to have anyone else post some comments about this matter.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch
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Newport Road Opening Delayed
by Holly
5/08/2007 12:45:00 PM
I got this from the Californian this morning:
The original goal was to have the eastbound lanes of a relocated Newport Road between Canyon Lake and Sun City open in March.
Now, developers building the Audie Murphy Ranch subdivision at the crossroads of Sun City, Canyon Lake and Quail Valley anticipate those lanes will open in July. The westbound lanes should open by December, said Ken Hauck, director of land development for Woodside Homes, one of two builders.
Read the full article here...
http://www.nctimes.com/..../4_03_015_7_07.txtLabels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, Newport-Road
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Audie Murphy Ranch Is Too Noisy
by Steve
10/25/2006 11:27:00 PM
Here is a note from someone who lives just south Audie Murphy Ranch, and complains the construction work is too noisy...
Hi all, just found out about this web site, very informative! I have a comment/question if anyone wants to contribute. I live just south of the Audie Murphy project between Newport and Holland. It used to be the most peaceful place on earth when we first moved here 14 years ago. My comment is, this is pretty much hell on earth now. Dirt and noise and trucks and traffic! It not no fun living with all of that going on right in my backyard. My question is: does anyone know if there is any developer looking at our property? I will sell in a minute as I know several others around me will too. As it is, we couldn't sell it ourselves because no one wants to live with all of this going on - we can't move even if we want too! Developers can have this area; it is not our peaceful little ranches any longer; I want to get out of here!
Even if you're not a developer, I'm sure that real estate is going to go up in price, once Audie Murphy Ranch completes construction.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch
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Menifee is Growing
by Holly
7/30/2005 12:07:00 PM
I think it is great that so many people are writing to this site.I have lived in Menifee since 1992, when there was nothing here. Everyone wanted amenities, but I think we all forget how much traffic, trash, accidents and etc. it all brings. I recently got an email from a developer wanting to know how to use his park space. He had contacted AYSO and others. I told him we needed soccer, baseball, basketball fields and nice parks. The parks we now have do not accomodate enough people. The park on La Ladera is going to be an excellent addition. I can't wait for it do be done, since I live near it.
We not only need parks, but like it has been said, we need law enforcement. We need a boys and Girls Club. We need to start getting the amenities that Temecula has.
We need to become a CITY. We need to have our own High School. Lets make Jeff Stone aware that the residents want these things.
On another note, I have heard that a new middle school will be built behind the new Park on La Ladera. In the Audie Murphy Ranch project.
Labels: Audie-Murphy-Ranch, La-Ladera-Park
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