Panorama Neighborhood Streets Are Focus of City Council on Wednesday

CATHEDRAL CITY — On Aug. 20, 2023, Tropical Storm Hilary struck Southern California, the Coachella Valley, and, more specifically, Cathedral City, resulting in flooded roads, neighborhoods,
and mud flows in various areas of Cathedral City.

Runoff flood waters brought large amounts of sediment and debris, leaving many areas of the city flooded and covered in several feet of mud (soil) and debris, according to John Corella, director of engineering/public works.

The City Council is preparing to fix the ravaged streets. At its regular meeting on Wednesday, the City Council will consider awarding a construction contract to Hardy & Harper Inc. for the
Panorama Neighborhood Reconstruction Projects in the amount of $731,400, the lowest of six bids received.

Construction is scheduled to start in May and is estimated to be completed by July.

According to the city’s pavement management consultant and the Pavement Management Program used to predict the asphalt deterioration on the city’s roadway network, the resulting level of deterioration within the streets affected by Tropical Storm Hilary deteriorated up to eight years faster, thus a reduction in the useful life of the pavement ranging up to 27%.

The emergency work and clean-up efforts throughout the Panorama Neighborhood began on Aug. 21, 2023, and was completed on March 20, 2024. Various contractors were hired to assist the city with the disaster recovery.

As a result of the emergency work, the pavement on several residential streets and public alleys within the Panorama neighborhood were affected due to the flooding, the mud flows, and the heavy equipment used during the clean-up efforts.

This past November 2023, several capital improvement construction and maintenance projects had to
be re-evaluated and reprioritized to include street maintenance and reconstruction of the areas affected by Tropical Storm Hilary in addition to reprogrammed routine maintenance, according to Corella.

On Feb. 28, the City Council approved a resolution adopting the City’s FY 2024-2025 Capital Improvement Project (CIP) Plan’s projects funded by Senate Bill 1 (SB-1) and approved a list of CIP projects that included segments of Horizon Road, Los Gatos Road, Panorama Road, East-West Alleyway, and North-South Alleyway.

These streets and public alleys are within the Panorama Neighborhood and have been identified for a complete rehabilitation to restore the pavement condition.

City staff prepared the plans, specifications, and estimates for the following projects:

  • Horizon Road from Vista Chino to Panorama Road
  • Los Gatos Road from Fortuna Way to Date Palm Drive
  • Panorama Road from Avenida Diosa to Avenida La Vista
  • East-West Alley from Horizon Road to Date Palm Drive
  • North-South Alley from Adelina Road to South end of Alley

Image Sources

  • Capital Improvement Project Plan: City of Cathedral City