East Valley roads: How $4.57M in pavement funding will improve air quality
Road improvement projects are heading to the East Valley, after the South Coast Air Quality Management District approved $4.57 million to pave dirt roads in Polanco parks, mobile home parks and public roadways in eastern Coachella Valley.
It'll be the first mobile home road paving effort in 10 years, Supervisor Manuel Perez announced. It was originally possible through South Coast AQMD, the Riverside County Transportation Department, and work by Perez as a member of the California State Assembly.
“I think after so many years of of disinvestment and not feeling like their needs have been heard... this is a project that is being done finally for the community," said Krystal Otworth, who is a Policy Advocate with nonprofit Leadership Counsel.
Otworth tells us it’s one of the biggest infrastructure problems for East Valley residents.
The $4.57 million in funding will help turn the dirt lots into paved roads.
“In the long haul, it's really a small step, but it is a step. And so not only is that bringing hope to the community… it’s the acknowledgement that there are real concerns, there are health issues here," she said.
By paving roads, it not only helps with driving conditions but it also helps improve air quality for residents.
“Every time a car passes by, this is dust that is being inhaled and put into these homes," Otworth explained.
The kicked up dirt adds to the poor air quality that has taken a toll on the community's health.
“Community members struggle with asthma and serious lung diseases, and paving the roads is a step towards making sure that the dust and particulate matter that causes these health issues gets addressed," she said.
The South Coast AQMD will open applications through November 2023 for proposals to use the funds for paving programs in the local communities in the east valley.
Check Out: RivCo officials meet with residents to discuss improved infrastructure plan
Perez's office said South Coast AQMD will conduct extensive outreach, and a selection panel with community input will be making recommendations for selection of paving projects. Construction is expected to take place in mid‑2024.
The funding comes from the Community Air Protection AB 134 Fund, which is funding appropriated by the California State Legislature to address localized air pollution in communities across the state, according to Perez's office.
Perez's office said South Coast AQMD will conduct extensive outreach, and a selection panel with community input will be making recommendations for selection of paving projects. Construction is expected to take place in mid‑2024.
The funding comes from the Community Air Protection AB 134 Fund, which is funding appropriated by the California State Legislature to address localized air pollution in communities across the state, according to Perez's office.
Perez's office says the funding is an innovative solution to a historical challenge in the east valley, the lack of paved roads within many of the region’s mobile home parks.
"Paving of private roadways within mobile home parks is unable to be done through traditional transportation funding sources. The lack of paved roads has meant that students and their parents have walked on dirt streets when walking to school or to the bus stop. Dust from unpaved roads has been a significant source of fine particulate pollution that gets kicked up into the air by vehicles traveling down the roads. Unpaved roads also become difficult to traverse during storms, isolating mobile home park communities at times.
The last major mobile home road paving effort came 10 years ago and was made possible through South Coast AQMD, the Riverside County Transportation Department and work by Perez as a member of the California State Assembly. A $4.1 million road paving project was funded through air quality mitigation funds that came as a result of AB 1318, legislation Perez authored that authorized the Sentinel Energy Project near Desert Hot Springs and created a $53 million mitigation fund for air quality projects. That unique funding source enabled the Riverside County Transportation Department to pave roads in over 30 mobile home parks in the communities of Mecca, Thermal and Oasis."
- News release from office of Supervisor Manuel Perez
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