1 Emily Bodkin
From: Bryan Stone <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 4, 2026 3:07 PM
To: CityClerk
Cc: James Light; Paige Kaluderovic; Brad Waller; Chadwick B. Castle; Zein Obagi; Scott Behrendt Subject: Public Input on Item N.2 – Support for Deleting the PCH/PVB Right-Turn Lane and Upgrading Tree Wells to Functional Green Infrastructure
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
Categories: Emily, Khatirah
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Dear Mayor Light and Members of the City Council:
I am writing regarding Item N.2, the recommended changes to the scope of work for Caltrans’ PCH Improvement Project at Palos Verdes Boulevard.
I support staff’s recommendation to delete the dedicated northbound right-turn lane. The recent traffic counts clearly show that the volumes never reached the levels projected a decade ago and remain well below accepted warrants. Installing the lane would lengthen crosswalks, reduce green time for the main PCH movements, and work against the observed growth in walking and biking. Cancelling an unnecessary widening that the data no longer supports is the responsible course.
I also support redirecting those funds to repair the deteriorated cross gutters between Knob Hill and Avenue H. That is basic, practical maintenance that improves safety and reduces damage to vehicles and pavement.
On the proposed tree wells in the former right-turn dedication area, I ask the Council to go one step further. Rather than simple aesthetic plantings, direct staff to design them as functional stormwater tree wells (bio-retention systems). Properly engineered, these wells can capture and infiltrate street runoff, filter pollutants, and contribute measurable benefit toward the City’s broader stormwater and MS4 compliance efforts. Treating them as green infrastructure rather than pure landscaping turns a modest streetscape improvement into a useful piece of a larger, more strategic plan.
This approach keeps the project data-driven, avoids unnecessary roadway expansion, funds real maintenance needs, and extracts greater long-term value from the same dollars already programmed in the Caltrans project.
Thank you for considering this input.
Sincerely,
Bryan Stone
22511 Fisk Lane
Redondo Beach