After a meeting with the public at the Kernville Chamber of Commerce, Kern County Public works has laid out a timeline for repairs on Sierra Way.
“We’re planning to start construction in April and be completed by July,” said Sal Gomez, Assistant Director at Kern County Public Works.
Gomez says this is a timeline for a long-term, but ultimately temporary repair which will open the road to the public.
“We’re still working on having a permanent solution, which will probably take several years.”
At the meeting residents expressed that they would like to see a permanent solution, but officials said the fastest way to get the road open was with a temporary fix that would open the road while public works creates a plan for a permanent solution.
Sierra Way is a road in the Kern River Valley that connects the 178 to Kernville. During last year’s storms, it suffered major damage by the heavy flows of the South Fork of the Kern River, rendering it impassable.
The price tag for the temporary fix would be around one million dollars Gomez said.