WILLIAMS, CA (MPG) — A concrete traffic island at the intersection of Fourth and E streets has become the latest flashpoint in Williams, where city leaders say the “pork chop” was installed for safety while business owners argue it is choking off their livelihoods.
The pork chop, named for its triangular shape, is meant to keep drivers from making left turns across multiple lanes of traffic near the busy Interstate 5 ramps. Police Chief Chris Miller authorized the change last November, citing the hazard of vehicles weaving across E Street to reach nearby businesses. City officials say the measure was a stopgap until larger street projects are completed.
For business owners who rely on visibility and easy access, the change has had costly consequences. Owners of Wayman’s 76, a Chinese restaurant, and the Sure Stay motel told the City Council this month that the restriction has driven away customers, cut into sales, and created new safety problems in their parking lots.
Nancy Marshall, who has owned Wayman’s 76 for more than four decades, said the concrete barrier has reduced fuel sales to the point that her supplier will not offer the incentives needed to renew a long-term contract. She presented a letter from her distributor showing sales volume had dropped by half compared to previous years.
“I’ve survived floods and downturns, but I cannot survive the city blocking the entrance and exit to my business,” Marshall told the council. “There’s absolutely no other development going on along E Street. For 11 months, my business has been suffering because of a project that may or may not happen on the other side.”
Marshall’s daughter, Wendy MacKaben, added that the changes confuse travelers and discourage repeat visits. She said large trucks with trailers often bypass the station because they cannot turn in. Others end up using the station’s lot as a turnaround, sometimes at high speeds.
“We’ve become the cul-de-sac,” MacKaben said. “People are frustrated, and now our parking lot is the shortcut. That’s not safe for families walking to their cars.”
The family gathered more than 1,100 petition signatures from residents and travelers who said the traffic island has made access more difficult.
Across the street, Elena Thanh Sin Duong, owner of the Williams Chinese Restaurant, said her business has lost $32,000 in sales over the last six months compared to the same period last year. She has reduced employee hours and worries that traffic will worsen once a Dutch Bros coffee shop opens nearby.
“Restoring two-way access would not only support small businesses like mine, it would also distribute traffic more evenly,” Duong said. “Right now it feels like our community is being asked to carry the burden of a safety project that isn’t even finished.”
The owner of the Sure Stay motel, located just south of the intersection, told council members the pork chop has caused confusion for guests who rely on navigation apps. Because the smaller side street is not well mapped, drivers expect to reach the hotel from Fourth Street and end up circling back. He said the motel has seen fewer transient bookings and lost drive-in business.
While business owners emphasized economic harm, city staff argued the broader decline in fuel sales and tax revenue points to a different story. City Administrator Frank Kennedy said staff analyzed sales data with the city’s finance director and found that gas stations across Williams saw a 22 percent decline in sales tax revenue between October 2024 and March 2025. Wayman’s 76, by comparison, lost only 4 percent in gallons sold.
“They beat the curve,” Kennedy said. “We know the economy is going down and citywide sales are on the decline. It’s not a one-to-one comparison, but the 76 station has done better than the rest.”
Still, documents obtained through a public records request filed by Marshall raised questions about the decision-making process. City records confirmed no formal traffic study was conducted before the pork chop was installed. Instead, engineers flagged the intersection as a conflict point during planning for the E Street project and a proposed truck stop that has since stalled.
Under Williams Municipal Code Chapter 10.12, the authority to install or remove traffic control devices rests solely with the police chief, not the City Council. That has left some business owners feeling sidelined in the process.
Former county supervisor Mark Marshall, who also spoke for the family business, said the city knew drivers would cut through private property once the access was blocked.
“Our situation is dire,” he said. “This project was not well thought out. At the very least, it was premature.”
Miller, the police chief, defended the installation, saying state standards would not allow a road so close to an interstate off-ramp today. The pork chop, he said, was intended to prevent left turns across multiple lanes, a known safety hazard.
“If you were to remove it, you’d be allowing vehicles to cross over with all the other conflict points right next to the on-off ramps,” Miller said. “That’s the whole purpose, safety.”
Several council members, however, expressed doubt.
Councilmember John Troughton Jr. called the barrier premature, saying he observed cars making awkward turnarounds and even cutting through the gas station lot.
“We just should have waited until the divider was in place for the E Street project,” he said. “Now I think we should take it out because it’s hurting businesses.”
Councilmember Kate Dunlap asked whether the same safety could be achieved with a smaller traffic feature that still allowed right-in, right-out access to Fourth Street. Both Kennedy and Miller acknowledged such a design could be possible, though it would not allow left turns.
Mayor Maria Belmontes-Leyva pressed city staff on the timeline for the broader E Street project, which includes a raised median and new signalization at Fifth Street. Kennedy said delays with nearby private development, including legal disputes over a Chevron property, have stalled construction of a new F Street needed before the median can be built.
“That project was supposed to be done last year,” Marshall said. “It’s almost 2026. We cannot keep waiting.”
Business owners warned that each month without a solution increases the risk of closure. Marshall said her station has been in the family for generations and supports local jobs. Duong said her staff’s hours have already been cut, and further losses could force more reductions.
Community members who spoke urged the council to act quickly.
“We want to bring new businesses here, but we don’t want to close old businesses’ doors,” said resident Sarbiji Singh.
The council could not vote on the issue at the September meeting because it was not formally on the agenda, but Belmontes-Leyva said she would place it on next month’s calendar. Kennedy said staff could work with engineers and the police chief on an alternative design to present for consideration.
For now, the pork chop remains. Its defenders say it prevents unsafe turns at a busy interstate corridor. Its critics say it has turned local businesses into dead ends.
What is clear is that the intersection represents more than concrete and paint. It reflects the balance Williams must strike between long-term safety plans and the survival of businesses that have anchored the community for decades.
As Troughton put it, “I hope they can survive it. But I don’t want to be part of them not surviving it.”