Shell Beach Streetscape Project

Location

Shell Beach Road from Cliff Avenue to Terrace Avenue

City or County Responsible for Project

City of Pismo Beach

Author

Erin Olsen

Organization

City of Pismo Beach, Engineering Division

Address

760 Mattie Road

Phone

805-773-4656

Project Description

The Shell Beach Streetscape is an 18 block long Complete Streets project improving safety and livability in the community for users of all ages and abilities by reconstructing the roadway, increasing lighting and landscaping, adding an 8-foot-wide multi-use path to accommodate bicycles and pedestrians, and painting sharrows in the traffic lanes. The improvements included sidewalk upgrades, ADA accessibility upgrades, improvements to the drainage and resurfacing of the roadway. In addition, the improvements included new crosswalks with paver inlays for increased visibility, enhanced landscaping with new trees and a new parking lot. Decorative features such as new LED streetlights, new benches, trash cans and public art have been installed throughout the corridor. This project was much more than just a streets and roads project; it also upgraded the existing water infrastructure and undergrounded the existing overhead utilities along the entire 18-block corridor. The Shell Beach Streetscape project supports efficient transportation alternatives, which in turn improves air quality and the health of the Shell Beach residents. The project connects neighborhoods to jobs and services while enabling bicycle and walking trips to schools, transit and parks for residents and visitors. Downtown driving is reduced by facilitating a “park-once” concept, in which visitors and workers can park in one location and then utilize the path and sidewalks to travel to various destinations along the corridor. The project improves and enhances the neighborhood and the economic vitality of the village of Shell Beach by drawing people to shop, live, and work in the community. Previously the sidewalks were in substandard condition and did not meet ADA requirements. Overhead street lighting along the corridor was insufficient and the skyline view was polluted with overhead utilities. The Shell Beach Road corridor is included on the city-wide Pismo Beach Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan and is a key connector to downtown Pismo Beach. The traffic calming improvements such as bulb-outs, narrow lanes, and distinctive crosswalks, reduce vehicular speeds, and the bicycle/pedestrian path is separated from vehicle traffic which creates a multimodal space that is safe for all users. See Exhibit 1 for a typical cross section. This project reached approval through the dedicated efforts of the City Council and City Staff, which began as a community concept in 2005 and the development of a Master Plan in 2007, and which was approved in 2009. The Shell Beach Improvement Group, a local community organization, actively supported the project from its inception through collaboration with the City on outreach and communications. The residents and businesses were supported by an outreach grant from PG&E. SCORE, a nationwide nonprofit dedicated to entrepreneur education and mentorship, actively supported opportunities for Shell Beach businesses to manage their business success throughout the