El Porto Underground Utilities Work Begins In Manhattan Beach

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — Work has begun on underground utilities for two districts in the El Porto area of North Manhattan Beach, according to Jeff Fijalka with the City of Manhattan Beach. Construction began Monday and will continue on an ongoing basis in phases. No work will be done this weekend or next or on Monday, Oct. 12 due to the Columbus Day holiday, he noted.

Through tomorrow [Friday, Oct. 9], portions of Highland Avenue from 45th Street to 42nd Street will be restricted to one lane in each direction between the hours of 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Beginning on Tuesday, Oct. 13, parts of Highland Avenue from Sea View Street to Rosecrans Avenue will be restricted to one lane in each direction from 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. through Friday, Oct. 16.

In addition, the west parking lane and outside southbound lane on Highland Avenue from 45th Street to Rosecrans Avenue will be closed 24 hours a day, with the exception of Saturday, Oct. 10-Monday, Oct. 12.

The work includes mainline trenching and vault installation within the right-of-way. Work on Highland Avenue will continue through November, said Fijalka. According to the city website, the work will be sequenced as follows:

• Installation of Southern California Edison vaults on Highland Avenue between 45th Street and Rosecrans Avenue. The work will start at 45th Street and move south, and will be followed by trench and conduit installation along Highland Avenue from north to south.
• Installation of SCE vaults on Ocean Drive between 45th Street and Rosecrans Avenue. The work will start at 45th Street and move south, and will be followed by trench and conduit installation along Ocean Drive from north to south.
• Installation of all other utility appurtenances, including conduits, hand holes, vents, etc. for both districts. The work will start in District 19-12 at 45th Street and move south. After District 19-12 is complete, the work will continue south into District 19-14, starting at 41st Street.

The undergrounding projects for Underground Utility Assessment Districts 19-12 and 19-14 in Manhattan Beach will be completed in four phases. Phase 1 work is expected to take 10 months and the entire process is expected to take approximately 24–33 months to complete, according to the city website. All work may be impacted by rain, the timeliness of residential conversions and unforeseen conditions during construction.