Santa Ynez High School Community Forum on Pedestrian Safety
They came together in Santa Ynez Wednesday night to talk about keeping students and the public safe around the campus of Santa Ynez High School.
The Community Forum comes one month after a Santa Ynez High School student died after being hit by a car while crossing Highway 246 at Refugio Road.
The forum begins a process stakeholders hope will eventually lead to pedestrian and traffic safety improvements around the campus and particularly along Highway 246.
A roadside memorial remains near the campus at the corner of Highway 246 and Refugio Road not far from where 15 year old Santa Ynez High School freshman student Carina Velasquez was struck by a minivan while crossing the highway after attending an after school event on campus last month.
She died from her injuries.
The Santa Ynez Valley Union High School District hosted the community forum Wednesday night inside the high school theater.
“I think its the first step toward both a healing process and a solution”, says SYVUHSD Superintendent Scott Cory.
Cory fielded dozens of suggestions on how to improve safety around the campus and along Hwy 246.
Others expressed concern and frustration about growing traffic in the area where students are coming and going from campus at all hours of the day.
“The hope is to take what we do tonight, distill it down to a group of maybe 8 to 10 people”, Cory says, “actually a working group that can take those ideas distill them down to realistic short and long term solutions.”
Family and friends of Carina Velasquez attended the forum.
“I thought tonight’s meeting was beautiful”, said Velasquez family friend Amanda Skinner, “I was disappointed that there weren’t as many people from the community that could have shown up especially with as many children that come to this school.”
Skinner says the Velasquez family would like to see a pedestrian bridge built over Highway 246 from campus.
“I know its expensive, I just think it would keep everyone safe”, Skinner says, “this community is getting bigger, and the casino is getting bigger and the Rona Barrett Foundation is going in across the way that will add more, its just going to get worse, its not going to better.”
Representatives from Caltrans, the CHP and local county Supervisor Doreen Farr’s office are expected to be part of the pedestrian safety working group going forward.
