Saturday Notes from the Underbelly

Davis to Woodland Bike Path in the Works

The County Board of Supervisors this week announced that funding was secured for a Davis-Woodland Bikepathway.

According to the staff report:

"Bids were opened October 31, 2007 and a construction contract to add 4’ bike lanes on County Road 99 between 27 and 29 was awarded to Central Valley Engineering and Paving in November 2007. Construction is expected to begin in Spring 2008 as weather allows, and to be completed after 45 working days."

"Funding for major road improvement projects comes primarily from state and federal sources. This funding is generally awarded on a competitive, project specific basis. The discretionary revenue received by the Road Fund generally covers only the annual cost to maintain the County’s 794 road miles, with the remainder available to meet match funding requirements.

An application was submitted to SACOG for the Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Funding Program on December 3, 2007. $1.6 million was requested for the widening of the County Road 29 segment.

A pre-application letter was submitted to SACOG on November 16, 2007 for $600,000 of SACOG Community Design Funds to improve County Road 99 between County Road 25A for bicyclists."

Supervisors Mariko Yamada and Matt Rexroad have led the way on this.

According to Supervisor Rexroad on his blog,

"My mission in January will be to focus on the dedicated bike path between Woodland and Davis. This information will be part of the discussion."

From the map it appears there will be dedicated four foot bike paths on both sides of the roads. While this is clearly an improvement over the existing road conditions and in fact I have enjoyed using such bike paths on some of the county roads.

That said, I would really prefer a separate bike path such as they have along Russell Blvd as it heads out to Winters (I never quite why the path suddenly stops halfway there). That way bicyclists would be separate from motorists who are traveling in excess of 60 mph along these roads.

As I said, the current plan is certainly an improvement, but if we are spending over $2 million at least in outside source money already, why not go the rest of the way for maximum safety and convenience for bicyclists?

I Object

Look at the two pictures above. One is from the Davis Enterprise website. The other is a scanned copy of yesterday's newspaper. Anyone notice a difference between the two pictures? Apparently some of the Vanguard's readers do. And, despite the appearances on this blog, the one on the right is much larger than the one on the left.

Before I get the sanctimonious and self-importance complaints again, I want to stress that while I find this absolutely hilarious, my objection is that they didn't also crop the picture on the left a bit more.

Donate to the 22nd Annual Holiday Meal

from Shelly Bailes and Ellen Pontac

The Davis Food Co-op is hosting the 22nd annual Holiday Meal on Monday, Dec. 24, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Veterans' Memorial Center, and we need some help. Groups like Davis Community Meals and STEAC report a continuing demand for their services. Last year, the Holiday Meal served a full nutritious dinner, free of charge, to more than 800 people.

We appreciate the support we have received in the past from local businesses and individuals. Please help us continue this Davis tradition with your financial donation. Donors who contribute will have their names listed at the meal, and those who donate $50 or more will be acknowledged also in our pre- and post-event advertising. All donations of any amount are appreciated.

Please take a moment to write a check and send it to: Holiday Meal, Davis Food Co-op, 620 G St., Davis. If you wish, you may leave your contribution at the Co-op as well. For more information, just call the Co-op at 758-2667 and speak to Seth Larsen or e-mail him at slarsen@davisfood.coop.

Thanks for your help.

---Doug Paul Davis reporting