Public Works

The majority of the work including the sewer line, utility joint trench, new sidewalks, street reconstruction, streetlights, pedestrian lights, green infrastructure, and pavement striping is anticipated to be completed by Spring 2023. The joint utility poles will be removed after all the utility companies (Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Comcast, AT&T, Verizon, Open 5G) have relocated their overhead cables, and installed and energized their underground lines.  This phase of the work is anticipated to be completed after the construction project is completed.

The County of San Mateo has secured and constructed two (2) parking lots that will be available during construction. The main lot is located at the intersection of 2^nd Avenue and Middlefield Road. The second parking lot is located at the intersection of Berkshire Avenue and Middlefield Road. Both lots offer free parking to the public and have posted hours of operation. On-street parking will continue to be limited in duration. There are no anticipated changes to the parking duration once the construction project is completed.

The County has assigned a Business Analyst who is available at all times, and responsible for answering and triaging calls and concerns regarding the project. The Business Analyst will serve as a liaison between the County Department of Public Works, and the business community. In addition to addressing community concerns and elevating issues to the proper department, they will also provide resource and assistance information to businesses.

San Mateo County Legal Aide provides community education, legal representation, systemic advocacy, and collaboration with community partners; SMC Legal Aide Office phone number: (650) 558-0915.

Yes, the contractor shall provide pedestrian customers, customer vehicles, and delivery vehicles access to businesses during construction. In general, the Contractor shall immediately provide access to all business entrances after the removal of adjacent concrete improvements (during sidewalk demolition), prior to and after placement of formwork, and after placement of concrete.

Overhead utilities will remain active until individual utility purveyors/companies pull underground joint trench cables and make connections to individual customers. Each respective utility purveyor (i.e. PG&E, AT&T, Verizon, etc.) will work to notify the business/property owners of when the service disconnect/reconnect will occur.

For sanitary sewer-related work, the Contractor shall notify the business/property owner not less than two (2) working days prior to the start of any work that is anticipated to disrupt service. The notification shall include the date and estimated time of disruption. Sanitary sewer shall be re-established at the end of the workday.

The designs for the improvements currently being constructed were developed over several years through a process that included robust community input, including community meetings, surveys mailed to North Fair Oaks (NFO) residents, a steering committee comprised of community members and stakeholders, and repeated engagement with the North Fair Oaks Community Council. 

Please visit our website at www.MiddlefieldRoad.org to follow the construction progress and stay up-to-date on the Project – information is available in both English and Spanish. 

A total of twelve (12) Trash and Recycle Receptacles will be installed as part of this Project. The businesses along the corridor must subscribe to garbage service and provide their own trash can for their customers.

Yes, there are signs posted along the construction zones indicating that the businesses are open during construction. The County has also posted this information on the billboards located within the Project limits. County has also conducted extensive outreach to make sure that the locals are aware that the businesses are open during construction.

The sidewalk and driveway in front of local businesses along Middlefield Road will be removed during the construction of the Project. For each Phase of construction, the Contractor shall provide pedestrian customers, customer vehicles, and delivery vehicles access to businesses. The Contractor will work with each business that will be affected during each Construction Phase and shall coordinate access for pedestrians, customer vehicles, and delivery vehicles.

The construction between Douglas Avenue and MacArthur Ave involves replacing sanitary sewer pipes along the west side and east side of Middlefield Road, as well as, Joint Trench work. This work will be done in phases; however, these phases will not occur in sequence. Business/Property Owners will be notified 48 hours in advance of any work planned adjacent to their property.

Parking will be available on the street after the completion of each phase of the work, (generally one or two blocks per phase). The parking areas will be delineated with temporary striping or other indicators.

Yes, typical construction working hours will occur Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5 pm.

Utilities will remain active until individual purveyors pull underground joint trench cables and make connections to individual customers. Each respective utility purveyor (i.e. PG&E, AT&T, Verizon, etc.) will work to notify the business/property owners when service disconnect/reconnect will occur.

As part of the Project, the Contractor is required to provide adequate dust control measures throughout construction. The Contractor is required to follow and implement construction best management practices for the Project.  The following are some of the dust control measures that will be implemented in the Project: 

• Application of water/dust palliative for dust control
• Covering haul trucks transporting soil, sand, or other loose materials
• Use of wet power vacuum street sweepers at least once a day to remove all visible mud or dirt track-outs on public roads
• Limiting vehicle speeds on unpaved roads
• Minimizing idling time of equipment when not in use

As part of the Project, Middlefield Road between Pacific Avenue and Fifth Ave will be reconfigured from a four-lane, two-way roadway to a three-lane (one lane in each direction with a center left-turn lane). Middlefield Road between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue will be re-striped to transition to the new lane configuration on the Middlefield Road corridor to the north. The County is currently evaluating extending the three lanes from Fifth Avenue to 8^th Avenue as a separate project.

Construction Related Questions:

County of San Mateo, Department of Public Works
Monday – Friday 8am - 5pm
Main Line: 650-363-4100
Email: DPW_Middlefieldrdproject@smcgov.org

Other Project Related Questions

San Mateo County Office of Community Affairs Monday – Friday 8am - 5pm
Main line: 650-363-1800
Email: CommunityAffairs@smcgov.org