The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors has voted to authorize $5.5 million for emergency repairs on six road segments that were damaged during winter storms.
Westside Road, West Soda Rock Lane, Wohler Road, Giovanetti Road and two segments on Cavedale Road sustained major damage during atmospheric river storms in late January and February.
The storms dumped about 6.5 inches of rain over five days at Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport, while some parts of the county recorded 15 inches in that span before another inch fell a few days later, according to the county. Two deaths were also attributed to the storms.
The authorization vote during the Board of Supervisors’ regular meeting April 15 gives the county’s Department of Public Infrastructure the ability to procure and award contracts for the work without returning to the board for another approval vote. That will allow the work to be done about six to eight weeks faster than it otherwise would have, according to board chair Lynda Hopkins.
“Time is of the essence for these projects. We need to quickly repair these roads, which are critical for accessing large areas of the county, including for evacuation and emergency response purposes,” Hopkins said in a statement.
“Time is of the essence for these projects. We need to quickly repair these roads, which are critical for accessing large areas of the county, including for evacuation and emergency response purposes.” SUpervisor Lynda Hopkins
The money will be drawn from the Tobacco Securitization fund, which was created by a multi-state settlement with tobacco companies for health-related costs in the late 1990s and is used for capital projects including infrastructure, according to the county.
Work will include installing retaining walls, drainage and surface repairs.
The work on Westside Road will cost $1.5 million. Repairs on Wohler Road, West Soda Rock Lane and one segment of Cavedale Road will cost $1 million for each.
Giovanetti Road and the other segment damaged on Cavedale Road will cost $500,000 each to repair, according to the county.