For the most recent developments on this project, please
see the Mono Lake Newsletter or contact Lisa
Cutting (
) at (760) 647-6595.
Summer 2005
The End of the Road: Mono
Lake Shoulder Widening Project is Over and Mono Can Breathe a Sigh of
Relief
October 18, 2004 - Mono County Suspends the Caltrans Mono Lake Highway Project
At the October meeting, the Mono County Local Transportation Commission (LTC) voted unanimously to suspend the Caltrans Mono Lake Shoulder Widening Project (Project) until January 2005, and the LTC Commissioners are currently exploring options for reallocating the 8.3 million dollars programmed for the 2007/08 fiscal year. The original Project proposed to widen and straighten 3.1 miles of Highway 395 which would have resulted in significant impacts to Mono Lake’s unique and sensitive west shore habitat.
At this recent meeting, Mono County staff provided several scenarios for reallocating the Project’s funds. These options include moving the funds to another project in Mono County or the greater Eastern Sierra region, scaling down the current project, or a combination of the two. Mono County is not considering moving forward with either of the build alternatives released in the October 2003 draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR).
Scaled-down Project Option
It is likely that improvements to the Old Marina turnoff and/or rockfall mitigation would be addressed if the scaled-down project option moves forward—as both of these components were identified by Caltrans and the LTC as main project priorities.
Mono County requested that Caltrans explore a more environmentally sensitive alternative for the Old Marina area than was presented in the draft EIR. The results of their analysis will be presented to the Mono Basin Regional Planning Committee and the LTC after completion.
The latest project developments—suspension of the project, evaluation of a scaled-down project, and exploring other highway project needs—all demonstrate movement in a positive direction. These new options under consideration acknowledge that the build alternatives Caltrans presented in the draft EIR were not appropriate for a highway project within the Mono Basin National Forest Scenic Area.
December 6, 2003
Almost 1,500 letters were sent to us (even more to Caltrans)
before the December 1st deadline! Thank you to everyone who wrote!
Click here to read the Mono Lake
Committee's 68-page letter (1.75 MB).
November 19, 2003
Survey shows higher lake likely to cut into proposed fillslopes.
October 30, 2003
ACTION ALERT! Last night's public meeting at
the Lee Vining Community Center was a great opportunity for the public to
have Caltrans record their comments on this project,
although not a very effective opportunity for
Caltrans staff to hear the public's concerns. Person after person
spoke of the inadequacy of the DEIR and the unique ecological value and
scenic vistas of the Mono Lake shoreline in this area. There was almost
unanimous opposition to raising the design speed of the highway. You
still have an opportunity to comment by
writing a letter to Caltrans before December 1, 2003!
October 1, 2003
The Draft EIR is available here
http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist9/projmgt/Mono_projects/26990/26990.html.
Click here for the Mono Lake Committee's
Action Alert. Comments are due December 1, 2003.
August 1, 2002
Thank you to all the Mono Lake friends who wrote letters to the Governor on the proposed widening of Highway 395 along the shore of Mono Lake. Your letters had an impact! As your letters requested, the Draft Environmental Impact Report was not finalized in June. Two productive July meetings and a planned early August meeting are creating the potential for a project that addresses key safety concerns without causing unacceptable wetland and scenic impacts.
In July, Caltrans Director Jeff Morales and State Water Board Chair Art Baggett traveled over from Sacramento to review the project site personally. Director Morales attended the Project Development Team meeting, which includes Caltrans, the US Forest Service, State Parks, Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, Mono County, Mono Lake Committee, and interested members of the public. Director Morales stated that the composition of the group is excellent, that there are no obstacles that cannot be resolved, and that the state will make sure the group gets the support it needs.
The State Water Board, Baggett offered, is ready to provide any resources that would be helpful, especially on water quality issues. Providing more detail and design information in the current phase of the project was also urged by Baggett.
So, while we’re not there yet, recent events create the possibility that an appropriate project design alternative will be included in the Draft Environmental Impact Report. To get there, a lot of work lies ahead for Caltrans, the agencies, and the Committee. The public release of the Draft Environmental Impact Report is still scheduled for January, 2003. Comments from everyone interested in this project will be critical at that time!
July 8, 2002
L.A. TIMES EDITORIAL
July 5, 2002
Deadline for getting letters to the governor is extended through
July. The head of Caltrans from Sacramento will visit Mono Lake July 11 to
see for himself what is happening. This is good news. The Local
Transportation Commission will consider a proposal from its chair, Kathy
Cage, to add a variable width shoulders alternative to the DEIR/EIS. This,
too, is good news. Mono Lake Committee member letters have had a
significant impact! Thank you!
Click here to submit a letter to the governor through this website.
June 28, 2002
Your letters to Governor Davis are tremendously helpful, but more
are needed. The submission of the DEIR to the Federal Highways
Administration has been temporarily delayed. But we don’t know when it
will be submitted or what it will contain. If you haven't sent a letter
yet, please send one by mid-July!
Click here to submit a letter to the governor through this website.
Mid-May 2002
ACTION ALERT!
Early May 2002
NEW: White Paper on Context
Sensitive Solutions at Mono Lake!
Read the CSS
Policy in Caltrans' own words.
February 2001
The Mono Lake Committee has attended several Caltrans meetings in the past
few months. General consensus is that the current range of alternatives
does not represent a broad enough spectrum of options. Mono County's
feeling is that there hasn't been adequate environmental scoping for this
project. Caltrans has acquiesced to the County's request and is holding an
environmental scoping meeting to allow for additional public comment.
Caltrans will evaluate ideas generated from this meeting and incorporate
into their environmental review process. It will be held March 7 at 6:00
PM in Lee Vining - specific location TBA. This is a very important meeting
to attend! Contact
for
more info or to share your thoughts.
November 2000
Caltrans is currently completing the
environmental review for this project - documents are anticipated to be
released September 2001. Construction
is scheduled to begin Spring 2004. The
Mono Basin Regional Planning Advisory Committee (RPAC) and community
members are concerned about the current project proposal.
Back to Mono Lake Widening Project Page
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