LANCASTER : Groundbreaking for Overpass Held
Lancaster officials held a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday for a planned $13-million overpass on Avenue L at Sierra Highway that has entangled the city in a controversial legal dispute over the proper use of redevelopment funds.
The structure will allow traffic on Avenue L to cross above the trains that now run on ground-level tracks along Sierra Highway. The city’s original plan to fund the project using money designated by state law for low- to moderate-income housing drew a legal challenge last December.
A Superior Court judge in August ruled that the city’s plan complied with state law, but opponents are appealing that ruling. Consequently, in order to proceed with the overpass, which is scheduled to be completed late next year, the city has had to fund the project from other sources.
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