More Road Repairs ... March 15, 2020

In response to the recent storm, we assessed the roads for needed repairs and employed Sean Molina, a local tractor operator and Monument Manor resident to make them.  Fortunately, Sean was available on short notice and was able to make the majority of the repairs by the end of the day on Sunday, March 15.  Work was completed throughout the neighborhood, filling in ruts and repairing and maintaining drainage features including the high spots we've created in the roads known as rolling dips.  The rolling dips, including those recently installed, worked as planned slowing down and holding back the water until they eventually breached.  This was beneificial in three ways: When the water slowed, sediment being carried by it was released and deposited behind the rolling dips filling in old erosion ruts, thus building up the road bed; material was prevented from being deposited lower down near Park Boulevard in the form of sand, requiring us to pay for it to be removed; and slowing the water allowed some of it to soak in and reduced its energy, resulting in less overall erosion.  Thank you MMNA members for making it possible for us to care for our roads in a timely and effective way. 

2019 Recap Road Repairs ... Feb 2020
Highlights for 2019 include work through out the Manor following winter storms in December 2018 and January 2019.  Work included repairing and building rolling dips, filling in ruts, and sand removal where needed throughout the Manor road system.  Noteworthy individual items included continuing to fill in a deep ruts on the north side of Single Tree below Old Vine Road and installing a rolling dip to reduce erosion, filling in deep, years in the making, ruts on upper Rocking Chair and placing a rolling dip to reduce erosion, continuing to work on filling in deep ruts on Uphill Road, managing drainage and filling in ruts on Turtle, and filling in a deep rut and beginning to manage the drainage at the intersection of Desert Shadows and Rocking Chair/Turtle.    

2018 Recap Road Repairs ... Jan 2019

In 2018 we made great progress on improving drainage on our roads and completing long needed repairs as well as repairing storm damage from storms on July 11, and October 13th.  Both storms were major events.  The one in October was at least a 50-year event for Joshua Tree and it was widespread. In the past these storms would have caused widespread, significant damage, requiring the expenditure of substantial funds to make the road passable again. 

 

Although we did have to make repairs after the storms throughout the neighborhood, they were not as substantial in size or cost as in the past, due to the preventative work we previously accomplished through contracts and roadwork parties.  This made more funds available to accomplish long-term repairs and improvements such as filling in deep ruts, and placing low rolling dips (low mounds of dirt in the road) to slow runoff.  Slowing down runoff results in material being deposited, building the roadbeds back up with the help of nature. There are still areas we’ve identified where long-term repairs and preventative actions are needed, but the long-term outlook is positive.  We are making continued progress toward getting our roads into the best shape they’ve been in decades.

 

Highlights for the year include diversions on Rockhaven, funded in part by both residents of that area and the Association, and addressing long standing drainage issues on Uphill, Desert Shadows, Single Tree and elsewhere as well as removal of some of the accumulated sand on Uphill and Single Tree.  The improvements on Rockhaven, in particular, were a big accomplishment.  Two areas where regular wash outs occurred, did not require any post storm maintenance this year.  

 

We were also able to buy, stockpile, and utilize far more high quality (compactible) dirt than we normally would thanks to our contractor, Sean Molina, finding an inexpensive source from the Yucca Valley sewer pipe contractors. 

 

The sign program was somewhat dormant in 2018, although we were able to get signs up at entrances along Quail Springs, alerting the public that our roads are private and require permission to use.  Look for more activity in 2019.

 

We did not have a road work party in 2019, but we plan to schedule one or more this year. We have some fun projects in mind.  We hope you will join us!  

 

All in all, it was a good year, and we look forward to making more improvements in the months and years to come.

Road Repairs ... Jan 2019
Beginning Tuesday of this week (Jan 8, 2019), extensive maintenance of our neighborhood roads will occur. This includes repairing more storm damage from October 2018, addressing long-term issues such as deep ruts and sand in the roads, and doing more preventative work in the form of drainage control.  While the scope of long-term repair needs is great, we continue to make good progress which is resulting in less damage after each storm event.  The extensive work on the roads this week would not have been possible without your generous contributions. Thank you to everyone who contributed in 2018 and a special thanks to those who contributed again after the October storm.  


Monsoon Road Repair Fund Drive  ... Nov 2018

The storm in October was devastating to many parts of Joshua Tree.  Thanks to the preventative work we've been doing our neighborhood fared pretty well.  We were able to make the roads passable with a relatively modest outlay of $1,500.  However, necessary near-term repairs threaten to deplete the MMNA’s reserves before the oft-rainy winter months.  More repairs are needed to address the storm damage, including filling in some large ruts and removing build ups of soft sand. 

 

In the wake of the recent storm, we have received offers from several Monument Manor neighbors to give additional donations to the neighborhood association road fund to pay for these needed repairs.

 

If you would like to contribute additional funds this year to help us complete this work, we would greatly appreciate it.  Please print this form and send along with your contribution to:   Monument Manor Neighborhood Association, PO Box 892, Joshua Tree, CA 92252.

Road Repairs ...  Nov 2018

On Saturday, October 13, 2018, a reported 1.41 inches of rain fell overnight in our neighborhood (at the Monument Manor weather station on Old Vine Road).  This resulted in significant erosion in the upper, steeper areas of the neighborhood and sand deposition in the lower areas. As you know, all of Joshua Tree and surrounding communities were affected.  One 50-year resident said it was the biggest storm during her time here.

 

Equipment operators were in great demand, but after the storm the Association quickly made some hand repairs and scheduled Sean Molina to do tractor work.  

 

We inspected the roads and provided Sean with a map and description of the most immediate repairs.  He subsequently worked in more than 20 locations throughout the Manor, adding dirt in eroded areas, removing sand, and repairing drainage features.

 

Our previous preventative work paid off; our roads were not as badly affected as in previous monsoons.  However, our emergency storm repair allocation of $1,500 was not sufficient to address all the storm damage. We are currently putting together a list of additional work for Sean to complete.  Among the tasks being considered is transporting sand off-site.  Typically, we push the sand out of the roads, piling it up along the road shoulders, but eventually, when it builds up, we have to remove some of it. This is an expensive but necessary task; we can't use sand to repair roads because it does not compact well.  We have reduced the rate of sand buildup by slowing the runoff, but in big storms it still accumulates.  We will also be importing and adding more dirt in areas that saw significant erosion.

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More projects by Monument Manor Neighborhood Association ... Jan 2017

The Monument Manor Neighborhood Association has made a number of road repairs and improvements. Among the improvements are three rolling dips (elevated sections of roadway) designed to slow runoff and reduce erosion.  

 

Two of the rolling dips are on Roadrunner and one is on Uphill just above Rocking Chair. The new rolling dip on Uphill is currently marked with cones that will be replaced by metal posts with reflectors. 

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The repairs, made by a contractor, addressed a backlog of issues as well as recent storm damage.  Work was done across the Manor including on Single Tree, Old Vine, Uphill, Desert Shadows, Roadrunner and Tortuga.  The good news is that the rolling dips and other preventative measures put in place before the recent storms kept damage to a minimum even though there was heavy rainfall.

 

Other preventative measures included the diversion of water off a portion of Vista Way and Wagon Wheel into an existing swale (ditch).  This measure was put in place before the storms, in part due to the hard work of Randy Melton - he and his wife (Marta) graciously allowed work to be done on their property to make the water diversion possible and Randy did most of the earth moving himself, by hand.  As a result, there was little to no erosion on the adjacent sections of both roads.