City of Fairfield public works staff on a recorded webinar presented plans to reconnect Markley Lane, a short residential collector left incomplete after prior development, saying the city has begun preliminary engineering and environmental work and has programmed $1.8 million toward design and right-of-way acquisition.

The project team described a concept design for a two-lane residential collector with bike lanes, sidewalks and on-street parking, a required three-acre detention basin for stormwater, and a preliminary cost estimate of about $5.1 million including construction. "It's approximately $700,000 to complete that design work," said Ryan Panganiban, assistant director of public works, describing the consultant scope and a recommended 20% contingency. Staff said the council has already programmed roughly $1.8 million, leaving an estimated shortfall of about $3.3 million.

Why it matters: the Markley Lane reconnection is identified in the city's Train Station Specific Plan (TSSP) and is intended to improve local circulation adjacent to the Fairfield train station and new development areas. Planning Area 3 in the TSSP anticipates substantial new housing and commercial development; staff said completing the road will require coordination with neighboring jurisdictions and private landowners.

Details and timeline
Staff said the city does not currently own the land needed for the ultimate alignment and showed a slide indicating three different private property owners whose land would be needed. Ryan Panganiban said right-of-way acquisition will require technical studies (soils, wetlands), appraisals, legal descriptions and negotiated purchase-and-sale agreements. "We will have an appraisal completed," he said, and then present offers to the landowner (identified in slides as the Wing family trust).

The consultant contract is organized in five tasks; staff said preliminary engineering and environmental work began in July. Right-of-way negotiation is a long-lead item that could take 12 to 24 months, and the conservative schedule projects design completion around 2028. Council members and staff said community safety—particularly evacuation routes for neighborhoods with only two ingress/egress points—will factor into traffic and operations analysis. The scope of consultant work includes traffic-volume and operations review to confirm whether a 74-foot right-of-way and the proposed two-lane cross section will meet future demand.

Funding and next steps
Staff said Bennett Engineering was selected after negotiation as the consultant team and that AIM is part of the consultant roster to lead community engagement. The city will post the recorded webinar and a project website with updates; Ryan Panganiban posted contact information for follow-up questions. Staff said they will complete due diligence before initiating direct negotiations with landowners and will return to council and the public with updates, proposing a follow-up in about a quarter.

Community concerns and comments
Chat participants asked about historical decisions, whether prior city leaders communicated about the removal of the connection, and whether the city previously owned the land. Sanjay Mishra, director of public works, said staff could not verify ownership in older records on the spot and offered to research historical ownership. A webinar commenter read in chat alleged that "mayor and Fairfield city council failed to hold the developers accountable," and staff acknowledged community frustration over the long delay: "Short answer is just not a priority," Sanjay said, addressing why the project had not been completed earlier.

What’s next: staff will continue preliminary engineering and environmental studies, post project materials and contact information online, and pursue right-of-way appraisal and acquisition once alignment and technical studies are sufficiently advanced. The city estimates a multi-year timeline contingent on property negotiations and funding.