La Paz Road Widening

By Walt Lawson

The long-awaited widening of La Paz Road between Chrisanta and the I-5 Freeway has begun but it is already causing traffic issues.

At a recent meeting of the Mission Viejo City Council, City Manager Dennis Wilberg spoke about the La Paz Road project. He noted that it would be paid for mostly with federal funds, begin in January 2023 and take about 6 months to complete. Wilberg also mentioned that the same contractor working on the I-5 Freeway project was hired for the Laz Paz Road widening to facilitate the completion of both projects.

The widening project has begun with work to cut down and clear the eucalyptus trees on both sides of Laz Paz Road. Wilberg mentioned that the tree removal was necessary to allow the expansion of the road but that none of the jacaranda trees in the medians would be disturbed.

The current work to clear the trees has caused the closure of one lane in each direction of La Paz at various times during the day, which has created delays both entering and leaving Mission Viejo during the past three weeks. School traffic from La Paz Intermediate School and Mission Viejo High School has also impacted the general flow of traffic in the mornings and afternoons. Drivers have the option of using Oso and Alicia Parkways as alternate routes when the Laz Paz traffic lanes are closed.

Employees at Viejo Liquor and Paradise Donuts & Deli, located at the intersection of La Paz and Muirlands, indicated that while traffic has been a problem, it has not heavily impacted their businesses. A staff member at Paradise Donuts & Deli said that a sidewalk closure one day kept students from nearby Mission Viejo High School from accessing the store. The employee also heard from the store’s landlord that the widening project would take 8 -12 months to complete.

Rich Schlesinger, City Engineer for the City of Mission Viejo, confirmed that the La Paz Widening project will take about a year and ultimately expand that section of the road from 4 to 6 lanes. He said that the agreement with the contractor is to maintain two lanes in each direction whenever possible, which is expected to be 90 to 95 percent of the time, and that any lane restriction would occur between 9 am to 3 pm or in the evening hours. Schlesinger also said that the project will include the planting of 200 mature trees and additional greenery, as the project was designed to both ease the traffic flow in and out of Mission Viejo and enhance the look of the entry into the City.