MEETING RECAP - AUGUST 2013

Union Valley Parkway (UVP)

Presented by David Beard, Mike Lew, and Rodger Olds

Hosted at the Radisson Hotel, Santa Maria

8/15/2013

The August Branch meeting featured the history, project development, and upcoming completion of the Union Valley Parkway (UVP) in two locations; the UVP Extension west of highway 135 and the UVP Interchange at US 101. The UVP is a major east-west arterial in the southern Santa Maria area. Its completion is finally becoming a reality after being in the City and County general plans for 50+ years. The Union Valley Parkway will provide a valuable new link both for local trips and for regional traffic headed to the airport, Orcutt, Vandenberg, and even Lompoc. This new route will substantially relieve traffic congestion on other parts of the local road network, as well as the adjacent US 101 interchanges at Clark and Santa Maria Way.

Substantial cooperation between Caltrans, the City of Santa Maria, the County of Santa Barbara, and funding partner SBCAG was needed to get the final portions of UVP into construction, and the entire length is expected to open to traffic by the end of this year. The meeting ended with a site visit to both construction sites.

Site Visit: Union Valley Parkway

(L to R)

Rodger Olds, City of Santa Maria

Mike Lew, Caltrans

David Beard, Caltrans

MEETING RECAP - JULY 2013

County Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Program

Presented by Carolyn Berg
Hosted at Upper Crust Trattoria, San Luis Obispo
7/19/2013

July’s Branch meeting covered the county-wide Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) program presented by Carolyn Berg with the County of San Luis Obispo. The San Luis Obispo County Regional Water Management Group and stakeholders are currently updating the IRWM Plan to meet current State Guidelines – an effort funded by $1-million of California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Proposition 84 grant funding and local funding match. The San Luis Obispo County IRWM Plan promotes implementation of projects and programs that ensure sustainable water uses, reliable water supplies, better water quality, enhanced groundwater reliability, environmental stewardship, efficient urban development, drought preparedness, and watershed awareness.

San Luis Obispo County is a part of what the State calls the “Central Coast Funding Area”, which includes six regions from Santa Cruz to Santa Barbara. These regions coordinate on water resources programs and overall IRWM development, but each region develops and implements its own IRWM Plan to address its critical local water resources issues. And when grant funding is available these six regions compete with each other at the State-wide level.

IRWM crosses jurisdictional, watershed, and political boundaries; involves multiple agencies, stakeholders, individuals, and groups; and attempts to address the water resources issues and differing perspectives of all the entities involved through mutually beneficial solutions. 

Carolyn Berg

Utilities Division Staff Engineer

County of San Luis Obispo, Department of Public Works