Ojai’s Street Paving Plan: Investing in Safer, Smoother Roads for Our Community

If you’ve ever driven, biked, or walked down one of Ojai’s bumpy roads and wondered when it might be fixed, you’re not alone. Good news: The City of Ojai is taking steps to address the condition of our streets with a thoughtful, strategic approach. The Pavement Management Program (PMP), developed by Stantec and approved in 2023, outlines a long-term plan to improve and maintain our city’s roads. It's an important step toward building safer infrastructure, enhancing quality of life, and protecting the investments we've made in our community.

Roads are like the arteries of a city—they connect us to work, school, local businesses, and each other. When roads are in poor condition, they can damage vehicles, discourage biking and walking, and even pose safety risks. At the same time, maintaining pavement is expensive, and costs rise the longer we wait. That’s why the Pavement Management Program is so vital—it provides a data-driven roadmap for taking care of our streets in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible.

Here’s what you need to know.

A Snapshot of Our Streets

Stantec’s engineers conducted a detailed assessment of all 27.5 centerline miles of publicly maintained streets in Ojai. Each street segment was evaluated and assigned a Pavement Condition Index (PCI) score from 0 to 100:

• Good/Excellent: 70–100

• Fair: 50–69

• Poor: 25–49

• Very Poor/Failed: 0–24

As of mid-2023, Ojai’s average PCI was 61, placing us in the "Fair" category. It means many of our roads are showing visible signs of wear, and a significant portion is deteriorating more quickly than it’s being repaired. We’ve been working aggressively to implement the paving plan and meet our goals!

The Plan Moving Forward

Stantec outlined three budget scenarios for maintaining and improving our roads. We are actively working on those now and plan to bring our streets up to a Good/Excellent grade between now and 2028.

In addition to repairing and paving the streets, we will consider work on curbs and gutters, stormwater drainage, and swales. These will be discussed in a future council meeting, and I’ll keep you posted about the dates of that meeting. As we define our Council goals and priorities, we will address these infrastructure plans.

Environmental Considerations

The PMP aligns with Ojai’s environmental values, though I hope we can do better in the future as new technologies come out. Maintaining roads more efficiently means fewer emissions from construction equipment and less waste in the long run. And smoother roads encourage alternative modes of transportation like biking and walking, which support our broader sustainability goals.

Our Public Works department is exploring paving materials and alternatives to concrete that will have less environmental impact. I’ll keep you posted about the progress as we hear from them about what more we can do as a city.

What’s Next?

You probably notice the cones and construction happening right now. We’re on it!! It’s happening!! Our streets are being paved, and it’s going swiftly. If you have concerns or questions, please reach out. Community input is crucial. As we prioritize street segments and seek funding, local voices help shape the values and priorities behind each decision.

How You Can Stay Informed

You can read the full PMP report here, and sign up for City Council updates to track upcoming public works projects and budget conversations. As a city, we’re committed to transparency and accountability—and that means keeping you in the loop every step of the way.

If you have thoughts or feedback, we’d love to hear from you. Our streets belong to all of us—and together, we can pave a smoother path forward.