San Joaquin County officials will be in Escalon for a special Pre-Construction Open House on Monday, April 24 as work is about to get underway on the Improve McHenry project.
The open house will run from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. and will be hosted at the Escalon Community Center, 1055 Escalon Ave.; interested residents are encouraged to stop by at any time during the 90-minute open house to learn more about the project.
Scheduled work will include widening 1.1 miles of McHenry Avenue from a point roughly 1,500 feet south of River Road to 190 feet south of Jones Road; replacement of two McHenry Avenue bridges, one over the Stanislaus River that spans San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties and one over the South San Joaquin Irrigation District Canal, replacing them with wider and safer bridges.
Also scheduled is the installation of a signal at the intersection of McHenry Avenue and River Road, as well as installation of a center two-way left turn lane to facilitate turns into and out of driveways on McHenry Avenue.
“At the open house, they will have stations set up with information about the project and staff there to answer questions,” Escalon City Manager Tammy Alcantor said of San Joaquin County Public Works officials.
The session will be open for a full 90 minutes; there are no formal presentations planned.
Ultimately, the goals of the project are to enhance safety, meet current seismic design standards for the new bridges and better accommodate existing and future traffic volumes, according to county officials.
A pre-meeting survey available on line featured a number of questions regarding use of the McHenry Avenue corridor, including how often you travel it, what type of vehicle you travel in, whether you travel McHenry for work, shopping, school, etc., and what times of day you most often travel the route.
Other questions sought input on whether respondents would consider using ride share services and, if so, what types they would most likely utilize.
Changes being made in the traffic flow pattern along McHenry Avenue will also help improve access and circulation as well improve air quality.
The recently installed roundabout, which replaced a four-way stop at McHenry and River, will ultimately be replaced by a traffic signal as part of the project.
Additional information on the project – slated for a late April construction start – is available by visiting www.ImproveMcHenry.com or by calling 209-497-5111. You can also text MCHENRY to 41411.
