Imperial Highway Widening Discussed

The mayor and mayor pro tem will report tonight on their attempt to foster better relations with a citizens group that opposes the city’s plan to widen and landscape Imperial Highway.

The two city officials recently met with the Organization of Unified Concerned Homeowners. The group, which calls itself OUCH!, sponsored an initiative that qualified for the November 1998 ballot. The measure gives residents a chance to vote on the city’s plans.

OUCH! members oppose the project because they believe the widening will change the semirural character of the town.

OUCH! member Tom Martin said that at the meeting, he repeated the group’s desire to have an environmental impact report conducted before construction begins. Martin also said the group wants the project delayed until a bridge is constructed at the railroad tracks because traffic gets congested on that part of the street.

Martin said the meeting could be a step toward more positive relations if it means the council will begin taking their demands more seriously.

But Barbara Kiley, the mayor pro tem, said she thinks OUCH! does not simply want to stall the project but wants the city to abandon it completely.

“It was a two-hour waste of time,” said Kiley, who supports the proposed changes to Imperial Highway. “They are not willing to give us even one inch. They just want everything to stop.”

The majority of the council stands behind the proposal because they believe adding medians and widening Imperial Highway at some points will make the street safer.

Mayor Mark Schwing, who supports putting the changes before the voters, would not comment on the meeting.

The council meets at 6:30 tonight at City Hall, 4845 Casa Loma Ave. Information: (714) 961-7100.