Construction on Lomas Santa Fe Drive between Santa Helena Drive and Highland Drive officially started on Tuesday, Oct. 13. The City said crews could begin setting out cones and signs in the following weeks, along with surveying, marking the pavement, and digging small test holes to find the water, gas and electrical lines underneath. The City of Solana Beach expects to finish the Lomas Santa Fe Corridor East project in Fall 2027.
That sounds like a year of bad driving on the city's main inland road. The rules attached to the contract tell a narrower story. Crews work weekday business hours only and stop for the holidays and the Del Mar Fair. At least one lane stays open in each direction the whole time. When it's done, the road still has the same four through lanes, plus a 0.93-mile walking and biking path on the north side that inland Solana Beach doesn't have today.
The work keeps office hours
According to the City's project FAQ, crews work 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on City holidays. There's no construction during the Del Mar Fair or around Thanksgiving and Christmas, and any work outside those hours needs City approval.
That schedule shapes which trips you'll notice.
| Time | Crews working? |
|---|---|
| Weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. | Yes, scheduled hours |
| Weekday early mornings and evenings | No, unless the City approves it |
| Saturdays and Sundays | No, unless the City approves it |
| City holidays | No |
| Around Thanksgiving and Christmas | No |
| During the Del Mar Fair | No |
So a weekend coffee run, a Sunday trip to Lomas Santa Fe Plaza at 905–993 Lomas Santa Fe Drive, or a drive home after 5:30 falls outside scheduled work hours. The trips that take the hit are midday errands and anything that crosses the corridor during working hours.
Thanksgiving falls on Nov. 26 this year, so the first holiday pause comes after about six weeks of work. The longer December pause follows soon after. The Del Mar Fair pause comes next summer, during the busiest weeks for traffic near the coast.
Four lanes now, four lanes when it's done
The finished road keeps every through lane it has today. The contract staff report and the City's design both keep two through lanes in each direction, so the finished road has four. During construction, the City's FAQ says to expect temporary lane closures, delays and some pedestrian and bike detours. The Union-Tribune reports that at least one lane will stay open in each direction the whole time.
Greg Gomez, project manager for Kleinfelder, the City's engineering and construction management firm, said it plainly in a San Diego Union-Tribune report from September: "We're not closing any roads, we'll always have a lane open in each direction at all times." The same article says Kleinfelder will keep a construction manager on site full time, focused on safety and communication.
Residents worried about traffic being pushed somewhere else. The Union-Tribune reported that public comments to the City Council focused on the 14-month construction period, the risk of long delays, and drivers cutting through parallel neighborhood streets such as Sun Valley Road. Keeping a lane open each way and working only on weekdays are the City's answers to that worry. Sun Valley Road during weekday working hours is where to watch whether those measures hold.
Three phases, working west toward Santa Helena
The City describes three phases moving from east to west. City Engineer Austin Frisby laid out the order in the same Union-Tribune report.
- The raised medians, which will be planted with native, drought-tolerant landscaping.
- A new sidewalk along the south side of Lomas Santa Fe.
- The north-side roadway work, which includes the new multi-use path.
Because the work runs east to west, the Highland Drive end goes first and the Santa Helena end goes last. The Santa Helena end is closest to the shopping center and to Interstate 5. The south-side sidewalk comes before the north-side path, so for a while people on foot will have a finished sidewalk on one side and active work on the other.
Via Mil Cumbres residents will be detoured to one of two exit routes during two short work phases. The City hasn't published dates for any phase. It says traffic impacts will be posted on the project page as they're scheduled, and residents can sign up there for email updates. For anything specific to a driveway or a business entrance, the project helpline is 858-723-8511 and the email is [email protected]. The City says it will keep access to homes and businesses open whenever possible and give advance notice of temporary restrictions when it can.
One timing detail differs by source. In September, the Union-Tribune reported the work would last "through summer 2027." The City's FAQ says Fall 2027, and that is the date to plan around.
What the 0.93 miles adds
The north-side path is the part of the project that changes how the road is used. Frisby described it as 0.93 miles of "scenic multi-use trail similar to the Coastal Rail Trail." Solana Beach's best-known walking and biking route runs north and south near the coast. This one runs east and west through the inland side of the city, on a road that today is mostly something you drive.
City Manager Alyssa Muto described the finished road to the Union-Tribune:
"On the other side (of the construction) will be a wonderful roadway with two lanes in each direction, some beautiful medians, some bike lanes and a lovely multi-use path with vegetation."
The City's list of improvements fills in the rest:
- Rebuilt roadway and new pavement from Santa Helena to Highland
- Class II bike lanes in both directions
- Raised medians with native, drought-tolerant landscaping
- New decorative walls, seating areas, and trash and recycling bins
- ADA-compliant curb ramps
- Storm drain and water-quality upgrades
- Changes to signs, striping and traffic signals
The Union-Tribune also reports a new decorative retaining wall near Santa Helena and Las Banderas, plus upgrades to the signalized intersections. These details went through a lot of review. In October 2025 coverage, the Union-Tribune reported that council members were still weighing changes to benches, decorative paving and trash receptacles. They also discussed changes to lane widths and signal timing at key intersections.
The design went through several rounds before that. The City's corridor page describes three planning phases, from identifying problems, to preliminary design with community input, to a revised design that dropped the roundabouts. Four through lanes, signals and a separate path are what came out of that process.
Who's paying, and what may come next
On May 27, 2026, the City Council approved Tri-Group Construction and Development, Inc. as the contractor, at $6,740,708. You'll see two totals in public materials, and they measure different things. The City's fact sheet and the Union-Tribune use $7.5 million. The contract staff report gives an all-in total of $8,578,944. That figure adds a $675,000 contingency, design support from Michael Baker International, and construction management and inspection from Kleinfelder.
Federal money covers most of the cost. The staff report shows $7,000,000 in federal Community Project Funding, $1,170,000 in City Transportation Impact Fees, and $408,944 from Measure S and other capital funds. The Union-Tribune credits the federal grant to Congressman Mike Levin.
The City calls this stretch the first phase of the wider Lomas Santa Fe corridor plan. The full study area runs from Sierra Avenue and Plaza Street near Highway 101 east to Highland Drive. The City's FY 2025/26 work plan names I-5 to Cedros Avenue as the next segment, estimates it at about $8 million, and notes about $850,000 already received for design and construction plans while the City looks for more funding. The Coast News described the western segment more broadly as running to Highway 101. For now, the funded and scheduled work is the stretch from Santa Helena to Highland.
If you live along Lomas Santa Fe and want to talk through how the construction year may affect a sale, a purchase or simply your plans for next year, Ingrid Pasco is glad to sit down with you, with the City's phase updates on the table. Schedule a Consultation whenever it suits you.
