By Mary O’KEEFE

After over a decade of discussing, proposing, rejecting and finally approving, the Foothill Boulevard medians are complete. 

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held on Monday at the median closest to the corner of Briggs Avenue and Foothill Boulevard where a “Welcome to La Crescenta” sign is placed. From the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Kathryn Barger of the 5th District was on hand to thank the Los Angeles County Public Works Dept., the Excel Paving Company, Crescenta Valley Town Council, CV Chamber of Commerce and the community for supporting the median project.

Project manager Lisa Woung from Public Works had spent many hours in the community and with the CVTC and CVCOC during the planning process.  

The idea of medians along Foothill Boulevard had been discussed and planned for the last two decades. This version of the medians began in 2013. Over the years, the CVTC held several meetings concerning the project and in 2016 held community meetings with LA County Public Works. In June, Woung was invited to the Crescenta Valley Town Council to share an update of the project.

The only thing that needs to be done to complete the project is the lighting. The possibility of using solar lighting had been researched by Public Works; however, it was found to be more viable and less expensive to use electric lighting, Woung said. 

Dave Gallagher, landscape architect associate, was the designer of the medians. He is a resident of Crescenta Valley and wanted the feel of the community to be reflected in the medians. 

When asked what he liked most about the project, he said, “During the course of the design the fact that we could reuse the rocks. I am from here and I know if you stick a shovel in the ground you are going to get rocks.”

The rocks all came from nearby debris basins. Although it would appear, especially in La Crescenta, easy to just get rocks and place them around the design, it wasn’t really that simple. Gallagher and his team were able to find a way to use the rocks. 

“I work with people who are open, which is great. The engineers I work with were able to reuse the rocks,” he said. 

The plants are California native and drought tolerant, a practice that is now the norm for any Southern California design. 

“There is also a theme going on with London plane tree,” Gallagher added. These are the trees that already line Foothill Boulevard sidewalks and now are included in the medians. There is a section of the median where there are not any trees, which were restricted because of underground utility cables. There are river walks that weave across the median to allow stepping stones for workers as well as keeping a parkway feel. 

“I am very happy of how it turned out,” Gallagher said. 

There are a total of seven medians along the boulevard. In a meeting in August at the CVTC, Woung stated that construction would begin in September and be completed by Thanksgiving. The work was completed in that timeframe, and all Foothill Boulevard lanes were open to traffic on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.