Eastlake Widening Project begins, residents brace for gridlock

Construction on a project to widen Eastlake Boulevard from four to six lanes in Horizon City is scheduled to begin Tuesday night.

Crews will widen Eastlake in between Darrington Road and Horizon Boulevard.

The first phase of the construction will require a westbound closure of Eastlake Boulevard between Darrington Road and Horizon Mesa Boulevard. Southbound lanes of Horizon Mesa Boulevard will also be closed from Desert Daisy Drive to Eastlake Boulevard.

“Short-term, the people are going to expect a lot of discomfort in their driving,” Horizon City Police Chief Mike McConnell said. “It’s really going to be beneficial for the community. It’s going to help to handle the growth in vehicle traffic.”

Leo Molina works for a heating and cooling company in Horizon. He said traffic is already bad as it is.

“I’m a little concerned about it, it holds us up pretty bad,” Molina said. “I’ve got to be punctual wherever I go.”

Businesses near Eastlake are also concerned about the traffic gridlock in the short-term.

“Yeah it will affect our business, but it’s worth it because later like in a year maybe it’s going to go up — a lot more customers,” said Jose Garcia, whose father is the owner of La Estrella Meat Market.

Garcia said he will have to wake up earlier to get to work, but he’s ultimately thankful for the construction.

“[Horizon City] is expanding, and I’m happy because of that,” Garcia said. “We just bought a house out here and the value is going to go up because of all this construction. Meanwhile, the traffic is bad but I guess we’ll get through this.”

McConnell recommends residents should plan ahead, because traffic is inevitable.

“If you don’t specifically have to drive in that area, you may want to consider Horizon Boulevard and coming back,” McConnell said. “But I do know that people live in that area and they have to go there.”