La Mesa Downtown Village Streetscape Improvement Project

The Downtown Village Streetscape Improvement Project, completed in December 2015, was a revitalization project of the City of La Mesa’s Downtown Village. The goal of the project was to replace and refurbish the existing street infrastructure and beautify the City’s downtown area. Project achievements included replacement of all curb, gutter, sidewalk, street paving, lighting, drainage and landscaping throughout the five blocks of the project limits. The project required extensive coordination between the City, the contractor, the downtown businesses and the public. Construction of the streetscape improvements spanned an 18-month period during which time all businesses remained open to the public. In order to accommodate traffic and parking throughout the downtown area and provide public access to businesses while the project was underway, the work was carefully phased to minimize impact, and tight block by block construction deadlines were imposed. La Mesa’s downtown village neighborhood is over 100 years old and was originally constructed at a time in history when there were few planning and development rules. Many of the village properties along La Mesa Boulevard were prone to flooding. The grading design of the new streetscape incorporated drainage improvements to move potential flood water away from the old buildings and storefronts and ensure compliance with new laws and standards such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Clean Water Act. A significant improvement, both technologically and for public benefit, was the installation of storm water interceptors with Silva tree filters. This innovation provides a way to intercept storm water from the street gutter and filter the water through tree wells and gravel filter drains prior to releasing it into the public storm drain system. These systems will not only provide water for street trees it will also help remove pollutants providing clean storm water heading downstream towards the ocean. The Silva cells are structural plastic frames capable of supporting heavy loads. They were placed beneath the sidewalk around the tree wells and filled with lightly compacted top soil. The Silva cells will permit expanded tree root growth without damaging the infrastructure. Other significant improvements include pedestrian enhancements such as sidewalk bulb-outs at intersections that reduce intersection crossing distances, additional space for outdoor dining and recreation, additional street furniture, bicycle racks, enhanced public lighting including intersection and gateway string lighting and pedestrian-scaled street lighting. Design features included hand tooled concrete sidewalks with exposed aggregate finish to give the sidewalks an older more classic look and improve walkability by reducing glare. Enhanced crosswalks are made of real brick for a more organic feel and sustainable construction. Finally, with the above mentioned improvements, the Downtown Village Streetscape Imp