By Bruce Barton

As far as the community at large is concerned, the controversy surrounding Mountain View’s Miramonte Reservoir Expansion Project has gone away as the project has gone forward. But try telling that to the Los Altos residents bordering the project site on three sides.

Since last summer, residents along Stanley, Russell and Berry avenues, and Diamond Court have been enduring noise, traffic congestion and dirty air from construction of a new reservoir designed to hold 3.2 million gallons. This in addition to an existing 700,000-gallon reservoir on the 3-acre site for nearly 60 years.

The Mountain View City Council approved the project in 2003 after a 1992 study identified a shortage of water for emergencies and fire protection.

“In general, our lives have been disrupted and we are all making the best of a bad situation,” said Diamond Court resident Sandra Beges. “Our homes along the perimeter are nothing but an 8-hour truck stop.

“The diesel fumes have driven the residents on Diamond Court inside their homes on more than one occasion, and we have never seen anyone from our city at the site doing any monitoring.”

Jim Porter, Los Altos public works director, said the city of Mountain View has that responsibility. “They’re doing all the on-site monitoring,” he said.

Porter said that since the initial excavation work last summer, he hasn’t received any resident complaints.

Neither has Chris Halvorsen, project construction manager for the city of Mountain View. Halvorsen said monitoring is not required because the trucks going in and out of the site are operating within the vehicle code.Halvorsen pointed to a 10-foot-high curtain surrounding the site to cushion sound. He said the city has tried to be responsive to complaints and works with a neighborhood liaison to field any resident’s issues.

Beges is a member of the resident group FLOOD (Families of Los Altos Opposing the Oncoming Deluge). The group’s chief fear is that the reservoir will crack in a strong earthquake, and flood surrounding residences. Their Web site, www.F-L-O-O-D.org, contains photos documenting the ongoing construction of the project. A project consultant said the new reservoir could survive a 7.9-magnitude earthquake.

Fueling some resident frustration is an assertion that the city of Los Altos and city councilmembers did little to oppose the project. The city missed a deadline for responding to Mountain View’s environmental impact report. But Porter said Mountain View was given no special treatment.

Los Altos city officials sent a letter to Mountain View relaying resident concerns and suggesting mitigation measures.

“We approached this as any other project,” Porter said. “(Mountain View) has done their due diligence.”

Reservoir construction is targeted for a June completion, followed by three months of detail work.