Traffic will soon ease at the intersection of Sea World Drive and Friars Road soon, as the city says one of two underground water projects there is nearly done.
Drivers navigating the intersection of Sea World Drive and Friars Road have had to weave around lane closures and slowdowns for so long that the neon orange cones nearly blend into the background.
After years, most of the Morena Pump Station is complete, so eastbound lanes should reopen in the fall, according to city spokesperson Jennifer McBride.
That pump station, located near Morena Road but affecting Friars Road sewers, is part of the Pure Water San Diego effort, in which the city aims to provide 50% of drinking water through purifying and cleaning recycled water by 2035. The pump station will divert wastewater north to the North City facility that will purify water.
However, underground conditions discovered when crews began to build caused major headaches – and delayed the Morena Pump Station project. Crews ultimately had to construct six sewer structures, according to McBride.
Now the underground construction is done, but the contractor is testing the infrastructure. Then, crews need to rebuild the above-ground structures, including medians and traffic signals.
But that’s not the only project happening at the intersection – and the other one, the Alvarado 2nd Extension Pipeline Project, will take even longer to complete while the city reevaluates the scope of the project and what permits it needs.
On the other side of Friars Road, east of Napa Street, crews are replacing a water main made of asbestos cement that was installed between 1965 to 1975. They are changing it to 16-inch and 48-inch PVC materials.
The Friars Road section is part of a 10-mile stretch of aging pipeline being replaced from Mission Valley to Mission Bay. The partially funded project to replace them costs $158 million, according to the city’s capital improvement projects tracker.
However, the Friars Road and Sea World Drive section is spurring delays, according to city spokesperson Tyler Becker.
Becker said the pipeline work began with jet grouting operations, but during the work, “project conditions and additional regulatory and permitting requirements were identified that require further evaluation and coordination.” The city is looking at the proposed work and coordinating with other agencies.
“At this time, the city has not made a final determination regarding the future scope or alignment in this area while the evaluation continues,” he said.
The description of the project states that new 24- and 48-inch transmission mains are planned for Friars Road between I-805 and West Mission Bay Drive. Plus, the project also includes replacing a 12-inch main on Sea World Drive and a 16-inch main parallel to the transmission main on Friars Road. The engineering department began designing the project in 2015 and broke ground in 2024.
Afterward, the contractor will also resurface the road and add back pedestrian curb ramps and bike facilities. The entire project, not just the Friars Road section, will be done in 2030 according to current estimates.
