Petitioners vow to continue fight
By David N. Young
The state’s transportation agency responded to a petition purportedly signed by more than 500 area residents saying, in essence, that standards established in 1989 are sufficient, despite new overpass additions and a new lane to come.
Residents are asking for improvements to the sound wall and a change in the Caltrans landscaping plan. The petition is requesting Caltrans “correct the improper height of the sound wall,” which they say was built over 26 years ago, and they want it rebuilt to 16 feet above the grade of the freeway at its highest location.
In a response to the Event-News Enterprise, however, Caltrans says their environmental engineers have reviewed the situation and have determined that “the existing combination of 12 feet, 8 inches of concrete block with an extension of 3 feet,, 4 inches of ribbed steel panels…should be as effective as concrete walls.”
Further, according to Caltrans spokesperson Van Nguyen said “the ribbed steel panels were accepted as Caltrans standards in June, 1989.”
In addition, he said, the engineers “have also said this wall was studied and modeled the same as other existing sound walls for this project and it was determined that exceeding the height was not feasible.”
Moreover, he said the September meeting in Rossmoor was organized by the OCTA to update the community about the I-405 improvement project.
Some residents have complained bitterly that Caltrans has made significant changes to the 405 Freeway since 1989 and are about to add another lane, worsening what they say is already an “unhealthy” level of noise pollution.
“Their response just makes me mad,” says Cindy Senteno, adding that they already knew that wall could not be higher because of the ground footings originally authorized by Caltrans.
“It’s frustrating,” says Senteno, who said she was working on behalf of the more than 500 Rossmoor residents who signed the petition. “It’s too easy for them to just dismiss us,” she said, adding, “I guess they don’t care.”
Senteno said they will begin contacting local representatives after the holiday to determine what comes next. She said the Rossmoor Homeowners Association have been tremendously helpful while the Rossmoor Community Services District took no action on their request for assistance, said Senteno.
Unlike the city of Seal Beach, which successfully sued Caltrans for changes to the 405 construction, including the moving of a sound wall, Rossmoor is an unincorporated area that must exercise any political muscle through the Community Services District and its duly elected representatives.
Some have urged them to sue Caltrans, she said, but they don’t have a local government to back them up and what they do have, the Community Services district, have turned them down, she said.
Their own sound testing indicates unhealthy levels of noise and she cannot understand why Caltrans won’t at least perform professional tests to see what has changed since 1989.
“They’ve tested for other communities,” she said. “Maybe because we are in an unincorporated area that we should not have a voice,” she shrugged. Senteno said they would attempt to hold another meeting with a larger room and keep the pressure up on Caltrans in attempt to get relief.