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Council approves quick‑build traffic calming at Madison/Herman/Larkin after neighborhood outreach compromise
Summary
Facing strong neighborhood pushback, the council approved a Regional Surface Transportation Project quick‑build at Madison, Herman and Larkin near Monterey High School — awarding a construction contract while directing staff to conduct additional resident outreach, request a grant extension, and return with any plan modifications.
The Monterey City Council on June 16 approved a grant‑funded quick‑build safety project at the Madison/Herman/Larkin intersection near Monterey High School, but only after a contentious public debate and a motion to require more neighborhood outreach before construction.
Staff described the project as a low‑cost Regional Surface Transportation Program (RSTP) quick‑build intended to slow vehicle speeds and improve pedestrian visibility at a busy school entrance. City engineer Andrew said the plan relies on painted medians, narrowed crossings and a small mountable central island — a traffic‑calming “traffic circle” that will remain stop‑controlled, not a yield roundabout. "This is stop controlled… you'll still have stop signs as you approach the intersection, but we'll have a mountable median island in the center," Andrew told council members as he explained that the mountable island is intended to reduce left‑turn conflicts and slow cars where many students cross.
Council members pressed staff on whether recent outreach had reached neighbors most affected by the plan. Councilmember Rash asked whether residents had been contacted recently; staff said outreach occurred at the grant application stage but no recent neighborhood meetings had been held to preview the finalized concept. Multiple residents who live near the intersection told council they had not been notified and warned redesigning the intersection could make weekday drop‑off traffic worse. One longtime neighbor said, “None of my neighbors have received any notification — all you're going to do is create more chaos.”
Council members weighed two competing pressures: use the grant and install the quick‑build during summer break, or delay and do more outreach that risks losing the grant’s construction window. Staff explained the tradeoffs: the quick‑build is temporary and reversible, and the grantor (TAMC) will sometimes agree to extensions, but delaying award could require returning funds and reapplying in a later cycle.
After extended discussion, a substitute motion won approval. The council authorized staff to award the construction contract to Don Chapen Company, Inc., with a 15% contingency to accommodate small plan changes, and directed staff to conduct targeted neighborhood outreach, consult again with Monterey High School on drop‑off patterns, request an extension from the grant agency if needed, and return to council with any substantive plan modifications for further approval. The motion passed unanimously.
What happens next: staff will do outreach with neighborhood associations and the high school, ask the grant agency for more time to construct during a gap in the school year if required, and prepare any small plan modifications as change orders within the authorized contingency. If major changes are requested by the community, staff said they would either rebid the work or return to council for reauthorization.
Why it matters: The action balances a desire to move faster on a recognized pedestrian‑safety need near a high‑pedestrian school corridor with neighborhood concerns about circulation and notification. Because the installation is a quick‑build, it is temporary by design; council members repeatedly noted the city can modify or remove the measures based on observed effects during a trial period.
