Residents press Escalon officials for traffic fixes and Bellaterra protections as Murphy Ranch proposal advances

Escalon City officials heard an hour of public comment at a joint workshop on the proposed Murphy Ranch residential subdivision, with neighbors urging traffic safety improvements at the Highway 120 and Brennan Road intersection and protections for the Bellaterra Landscape Lighting Maintenance District before the project advances to formal review.

City planning staff told the assembled residents that the Murphy Ranch application is under staff review and that "this project is consistent with the city's general plan," but emphasized the workshop is an information-gathering step and not a decision meeting. The city manager said staff has recorded residents' questions and "will bring answers to these questions ... right before or as we get to the planning commission."

The concern that dominated public comment was safety at 120 and Brennan. Resident Natalie Gallegos cited the developer Florsheim Homes' traffic study (conducted April 18–June 1, 2023, on Tuesdays through Thursdays) and said the study itself shows the intersection currently "rates at an F during peak hours" and that under cumulative conditions "delay at the intersection ... would be so high that their system, Syncro, is incapable of accurately reporting the delay." Several speakers said the study's days and timing undercount…