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Mountain View is moving forward with plans to repave a parking lot that serves golfers and other recreational visitors at Shoreline. But it won’t be cheap.
The City Council unanimously approved a $4-million appropriation last week to cover the cost of repaving the surface parking lot next to Shoreline Golf Links. The item passed on the council’s consent agenda, which is a collection of routine matters meant to be approved in a single vote.
The 150,000-square-foot surface parking lot is located over a closed landfill and is part of a 750-acre wildlife refuge and recreational area. The site is home to more than 20 different species of protected birds, including the Western burrowing owl, which is listed as a candidate for threatened or endangered species status by the California Fish and Game Commission.
The repaving of the parking lot “will require special design and environmental monitoring,” according to the city staff report for the June 23 meeting. The report also described the existing condition of the pavement as “deteriorated” and “in need of rehabilitation.”
Earlier this year, the city selected Sandis Engineers Surveyors and Planners to help carry out the project. The city has budgeted $407,000 for the firm’s services, which will include site surveys and investigation, data collection and design analysis. Sandis will also prepare construction bid documents and construction support, according to the staff report.
The design of the parking lot will start this summer and will take a year to complete. Construction is expected to begin in fall 2027, the report said.
What a waste of money.
How much per parking space and what’s wrong with packed dirt like on the Bay Trail? Shouldn’t we try to limit impermeable surfacing ….in an actual nature preserve?
The city doesn’t get bored with wasting our money
As a golf course and restaurant patron, I’m glad of this.
But I don’t think this is or should be the highest priority item. It’s not that bad. Asphalt patches in the bad spots would be fine.
Important questions not addressed in this article:
– Where is the money coming from? Is it from the city coffers, or from the Shoreline Special Tax District monies?
– Why was this passed as part of the consent agenda rather than a matter of debate?
– Why has the landscaping at Shoreline Park been allowed to die off over the last few years? Before the pandemic, this was a beautiful, green park, with plenty of trees and lovely, magical places for people to walk and kids to play. Now it’s just dirt and brown grass. Why? And why are we now prioritizing paving for the golfers’ cars over the right of everyone else to enjoy a beautiful walk in the park?