By Daniel Rothberg
Construction to repair underground water pipes will slow traffic on Coldwater Canyon Avenue for months to come, according to the Department of Water and Power. The first phase of construction, which is expected to be completed in December, will span from Dickens Street to Van Noord Avenue.
“What we see as the remedy would be [to] give yourself an extra 15 to 20 minutes [to arrive at school],” Head of Upper School Harry Salamandra said
The middle lane was eliminated in early June, and traffic cannot turn left out of the north driveway to the campus.
The school will post information and updates during the construction in a tab on its website.
“To keep the entire Harvard-Westlake community apprised of project developments, including potential lane closures and modifications to student pick-up [and] drop-off patterns, we will create a “construction update” tab on the school’s website,” Head of School Jeanne Huybrechts said in an email to faculty.
The project aims to replace a trunk line that was built in 1914, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said on their website.
“This is all part of the 10-year Capital Improvement Program that is for replacing aging water infrastructure,” Department of Water and Power’s construction engineering supervisor Todd P. Le said to the Sherman Oaks Patch in April. “We are trying to make this the least disruptive as possible.”
“They have guaranteed us that the access in and out of both driveways will not be restricted,” Salamandra said. “They may dig a trench across the driveway but what they can do is put plates over it so we can get in and out.”