Wildomar updates major road and trail projects as gas‑line conflict delays Palomar/Cemetery work

City staff on Tuesday told the Wildomar City Council that several transportation and capital projects are approaching construction but that timing remains contingent on utility relocations and external approvals. The Palomar/Cemetery improvement project, originally forecast to finish this calendar year, now targets February after crews identified a SoCal Gas line that must be lowered to meet clearance requirements.

"We've run into a utility conflict on Gruel Street," Public Works staff said, noting SoCal Gas will relocate the line through the end of the month before the contractor resumes street lowering and final intersection work. The contractor will reconstruct the Palomar/Wildomar Trail intersection during the school winter break to limit traffic impacts, staff said.

The council also received updates on two larger roadway projects. Staff said Clinton Keith widening and the Bundy Canyon Road rehab are near the end of design but still face final right‑of‑way negotiations and utility coordination. For Bundy Canyon, staff is preparing the bid package and hopes to advertise before the end of the calendar year so contracts can be awarded in January or February.

"We're continuing to work through final right‑of‑way issues and also final utility coordination issues," Public Works noted, adding that timing can extend when other property owners or agencies are involved. Staff estimated that, after advertising and award, contractors typically take several months to mobilize, so construction likely would begin in the second half of next year.

Wilder Trail restriping — a high‑priority item for residents — is still awaiting Caltrans review. Staff said they received comments this week and expect to resubmit design revisions in the next few weeks but could not yet provide an approval date.

Councilmembers pressed staff on traffic‑signal performance at the Palomar/Wilder Trail intersection; staff said the recently installed signals have experienced a controller failure and an episode of wire theft but will be corrected before final acceptance. They also said the long signal timing currently in use is a temporary timing to restore basic functionality and that video detection will replace loop detectors once the controller work is complete.

The council asked staff to monitor community impacts and return with schedule updates. Staff proposed bringing the pavement management final report and the unpaved roadway program to the council in January or February to inform budget decisions.

The Bundy Canyon/Monav Vista detention basin project also drew a separate discussion about fencing and long‑term maintenance. Flood Control installed chain‑link fence and will maintain it; the city declined to accept a decorative metal and block wall option now because revised bid documents added roughly $211,000 to the previously reported cost, bringing the decorative option to about $700,000. Staff recommended leaving the chain‑link fence in place and evaluating screening or decorative options later as a city project.