Church to work on afternoon traffic problem, prepares for remodel, foresees major construction

Acorn Staff Writer


Overflow parking into the streets from St. Jude the Apostle Church at the corner of Lindero Canyon Road and Foxfield Drive in Westlake Village has been a long-standing issue with neighbors, but it should disappear or decrease in about three years after construction of a two-story building to replace two current structures. About 55 new parking spaces will become available.


A new child pick-up procedure at the school will also go into effect immediately to restrict traffic on Lindero Canyon Road and Foxfield Drive between 2:30 and 2:45 p.m. when school lets out. Vehicles belonging to parents picking up children will form a line on St. Jude property, not on local streets.


Last week, St. Jude officials discussed a future project with a three- to five-year plan. According to Deacon Joe Manion, it will take place in phases, beginning in June.


"(We’ll remodel) the church to make it conform to the current liturgical norms," Manion said, "which involves an update affecting the baptismal fount, the placement of the alter and the ambo where the gospel is spoken from." The remodel will also include enhancement of the chapel where the holy Eucharist is conducted, an enlargement of the front outdoor patio and a remodeled entrance, enabling more sunlight indoors.


The work will occur during summertime in the off-peak season, sources said. It should be completed by late next December.


In June 2003, Manion said, a second phase will begin. "We’re going to put in an elevator over at the school to make the second story more accessible to more people," he said. The teachers’ and principal’s offices will be enlarged as well.


A much larger project should begin the following year, Manion said, if funding permits it. The all-purpose hall and the parish center will be removed and rebuilt into a two-story building, allowing more space and additional classrooms.


This phase might create parking overflow onto the streets, but the other phases shouldn’t, Manion said.


"I’ve been here for 25 years dealing with these parking issues," Manion said. St. Jude representatives, he said, have always tried to accommodate everyone’s needs in terms of parking on the streets. If a problem were to arise with the new construction at St. Jude’s, Manion said, he and his staff would try to help.


Regarding the traffic on Lindero Canyon Road and Foxfield Drive on weekday afternoons when school lets out, vehicles waiting to pick-up students will be re-routed through the school lot.


"We already have a traffic plan in effect," Manion said. "It’s been in effect for years. This is nothing new.


"We will change the traffic pattern on our property," Manion said. This way, traffic shouldn’t back up in the streets.


The traffic queue will begin at the St. Jude’s entrance on Lindero Canyon Road and direct motorists through a maze that will empty into Foxfield Drive.


Other than the traffic issues on the streets, dangers have been created when parents drop off or pick up their children from across the street on Foxfield Drive.


"(These people) cause a potential hazard to their own children," Manion said. The church has agreed with the city of Westlake Village that people who violate accepted procedures would be contacted.


If people still don’t comply, the sheriff’s department will begin to enforce the law, said traffic Sgt. Kevin Mauch of L.A. County Sheriff’s Department.





Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *