The Cloverdale Chronicle – Local News in Cloverdale, CA
Highway 101 to Be Re-Routed Through Downtown Cloverdale, Restoring Original Alignment
INFRASTRUCTURE
Juan Owan
12/15/20252 min read
Editor's Note: the contents of this article are satirical.
The past and future route of Cloverdale's Highway 101
Four-Lane, 65-MPH Freeway to Pass Through City Center
CLOVERDALE, CA - In a move described by planners as “historically consistent,” the Cloverdale City Council voted Wednesday to re-route U.S. Highway 101 directly through the city center, restoring the highway’s original path through town and converting Cloverdale Boulevard into a four-lane freeway with a posted speed limit of 65 miles per hour.
The plan will redirect northbound and southbound traffic off the existing bypass and onto downtown streets. Once complete, freeway traffic will pass the public library, the Cloverdale High School, Papa’s Pizza, and the Del Webb community.
“The City is currently disturbed and uncomfortable with the amount of change occurring in our quiet, friendly Cloverdale. With Esmerelda being built just minutes away to much protest, we wanted to give residents something to look forward to; something they don’t feel the need to fight. That’s why we’re bringing back what once was, the freeway through the center of town,” said historian and city planner Brent Haiston.
The city’s traffic study expects significant increases in vehicle volume, noise, and wind. Due to planning challenges, all crosswalks are slated to be removed. Pedestrian traffic across the highway will only be possible by car.
Residents are already imagining the change.
“I used to go to Plank Coffee, and then walk across the street to the art gallery every Sunday morning,” said long time Cloverdale resident Meryl Haines. “Now I’ll have to take the frontage Road and the Freeway to the art gallery.”
Local businesses expressed cautious acceptance. Some shop owners said they were encouraged by the prospect of increased exposure, though several noted that customers may need to approach their storefronts by exiting the freeway, crossing a frontage road, and navigating what planners referred to as a “brief pedestrian challenge.”
Outdoor dining will be permitted during off-peak traffic hours, defined as “between waves.”
City officials stressed that the plan honors Cloverdale’s past. Before the bypass was built, Highway 101 ran directly through town, bringing travelers, commerce, and a shared understanding that you waited until the road was clear before crossing it.
“We did it before,” said resident Denise Rowley. “People adapted.”
Keychains and ‘Highway 101’ memorabilia will be available for purchase starting this year in local storefronts, though the highway’s completion isn’t expected until late 2035.
