Palomar Street Road Widening & Cemetery Improvements Project (CIP 028-2, 067-1)

UPDATED 1.08.26

Traffic Alert: Palomar Street / Wildomar Trail

When:

Friday, January 9 through Monday, January 12, 2026

Where:

Wildomar Trail, west of Palomar Street to Illinois Street

What to Expect:

• Construction work on the west side of the intersection at Palomar St. & Wildomar Trail

• Wildomar Trail will be temporarily closed to thru traffic

• Traffic on Palomar Street will remain open

Detours:

• Westbound Wildomar Trail traffic: Detour at Palomar Street

• Eastbound Wildomar Trail traffic: Detour at Front Street

On October 9, 2024 the City of Wildomar awarded a construction contract to Van Engineering, Inc. (VEI) for the Palomar Street Widening Project, Phase 2, and Cemetery Improvement Project, Phase 1, Projects (CIP 028-2 and 067-1) (Project).

Drivers are advised to anticipate delays during this time and to consider using alternate routes. Please use caution when driving through the area. 

Feel free to contact the City if you have any questions or concerns.

General Updates

A Notice to Proceed was issued to the contractor (VEI) on December 9, 2024, The construction contract allows 240 working days to complete the required work. The contract completion is projected to be by the end of March, 2026 (barring time extensions due to change orders or inclement weather).

Please use caution when driving through construction areas in the city, and please follow all traffic control signs and direction from project traffic control personnel. Please expect delays when driving through the construction area. Construction Zone speed limits are strictly enforced.

Questions or Concerns

Please contact Cameron Luna, Associate Engineer (CIP), regarding any questions or concerns related to this project.

• Email Cameron Luna
• Phone: 951-677-7751, ext. 245

Project Summary

The Palomar Street Widening and Cemetery Improvement Project includes the following:

• Palomar St. 
  • Widening to provide an additional northbound lane
  • Multipurpose trail
  • Bike lanes
  • Sidewalks
  • New intersection improvements with improved pedestrian accessibility at the Wildomar Trail and Gruwell St. intersections
  • New traffic signals at the Wildomar Trail and Gruwell St. intersections
  • Landscaping
• Gruwell St. (along the Cemetery frontage)
  • Pavement reconstruction
  • Sidewalk
  • Curbside parking (south side of road)
  • Bike lanes
  • Cemetery 
• Cemetery
  • New block walls, wrought-iron fencing, and entrance gates
  • Perimeter/frontage landscaping on Palomar St. and Gruwell St.
  • On-site accessibility (ADA) improvements

Project Schedule

Construction began February 2025 and is scheduled to conclude at the end of March 2026. 

In January, the contractor has continued the project construction on schedule with the following activities:

• Grading and installation of bus pads, and AC pavement on Palomar Street. 
• Installation of multiuse trail on east side of Palomar Street from north of Wildomar Trail to Gruwell Street.
• Installation of traffic signal foundations at Wildomar Trail and Gruwell Street intersections.

Contractor Info

• Contractor: Van Engineering, Inc. (VEI)
• Design Engineer: Mark Thomas, Inc.
• Construction Management: Interwest Consulting Group
• Geotechnical Testing: GeoCon West, Inc.

Project Funding

The total estimated construction cost is approximately $8,649,000

Project Funding Sources include:

• ARPA
• Measure AA
• Cemetery Funds
• Development Impact Fees
• TUMF (Transportation Uniform Mitigation Fee)
• RCTC (Riverside County Transportation Commission)
• EVMWD Cooperative Agreement (Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District)

Relevant Project Documents

Project Budget and Fact Sheet from 5-Year CIP Program

• Project Detail Sheet (PDF)

City Council Meeting Project Update Presentations

• Coming Soon

Monthly City Newsletter Updates

• Coming Soon 

Photo Updates

Project Exhibit