CASTRO VALLEY — More than 55 vendors will be selling items at a flea market March 2 at the Kenneth C. Aitken Senior and Community Center.

There also will be a snack bar and a bake sale with homemade treats at the flea market, which runs 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 17800 Redwood Road.

The event is being hosted by the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District. For more details, call 510-881-6738.

The one-way traffic loop through downtown Hayward is scheduled for early March, according to the city’s website. I am working to get a more precise date, since March is less than three weeks away.

What’s involved: Massive traffic signal bridges that are being fabricated to order in Utah have to be shipped here. That entails getting permits to drive uber-wide loads through several states.

Once the bridges are here, there’s no good place to store them – we’re talking really wide – so they probably will go up pronto, though “pronto” still will take some doing and time. The bridges will span intersections along Foothill. The foundations (which run deep) were constructed earlier; remember those plywood boards for pedestrians near traffic lights? The foundations have been filled with asphalt for pedestrian safety. The bridges couldn’t be ordered until the foundations were constructed. It’s complicated, but Foothill is an old street, and the underground pipes and conduits aren’t always where the blueprints say they are, so each bridge’s specs are different. The asphalt was temporary and will be dug out.

Final paving of the loop – Five Flags north on Foothill to A Street, left on A to Mission Boulevard, south on Mission back to Five Flags – and lane striping will be needed, so, combined with installation of the signal bridges, we’re looking at major road closures and detours coming up. And you thought traffic was bad now!

Next week: According to city’s website, expect lane closures on Mission and Foothill, mostly Mission from Industrial to about Moreau High School both ways and Mission from Jackson Street to Highland Avenue, both ways.

The good news: Driving down Mission, big stretches are finished except for landscaping. The roads are smooth, and the ugly utility poles are gone. The lights look great.

HAYWARD – Sherlock Holmes is on the case starting Feb. 14 at the Douglas Morrisson Theatre.

“Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure” by Steven Dietz combines two of Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories, “The Scandal in Bohemia” and “The Final Problem.” The production, based on the original 1899 script by William Gillette and Doyle, won the 2007 Edgar Award for Best Mystery Play.

The whodunit previews Feb. 14 and opens at 8 p.m. Feb. 15, running through March 10. Tickets are $10 preview, $29 other performances, with discounts for seniors and students. A special Saturday matinee is scheduled for 2 p.m. March 2, followed by a “talk-back” session with the director and cast. Call 510-881-6777 or go to www.dmtonline.org.

If you haven’t been to the Douglas Morrisson Theatre at 22311 N. Third St. in Hayward, it’s a lovely theater, but it can be a little tricky to find. The website, www.dmtonline.org/Getting%20Here.htm, has fairly detailed directions, but a GPS or an old-fashioned map might not hurt. The theater used to be called Hayward Little Theatre, next to the Hayward Senior Center and Japanese Gardens. It’s run by Hayward Area Recreation and Park District.

What sounds like a fun event Saturday will benefit the Lighthouse Community Center of Hayward. Viva Las Vegas casino night starts at 5 p.m. at the Hayward City Hall Rotunda.

Entertainment includes Sasha Stephane as Cher, the Golden Follies and the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus.

It’s $25 advance, $30 at the door. If advance tickets are still available, you can get them at the Lighthouse Community Center, 217 A St., Hayward; Curly’s Place, 2059 B St., Hayward; and www.eventbrite.com.

Tickets get you $100 in gaming chips plus gourmet food, and there will be a cash bar. You must be 21 to attend.

The Lighthouse Community Center serves the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning community of Southern Alameda County.

For more information, email bobnsl@aol.com.

Emergency Shelter Program of Hayward has a new van from AutoWest Toyota in Hayward, thanks to Toyota’s Cars for Good program.

Toyota’s initiative hands out 100 cars to 100 nonprofit agencies over the course of 100 days.

Emergency Shelter Program provides shelter and other services to women and children who are survivors of domestic violence, human trafficking and homelessness. The van will be used to transport its clients to emergency shelter, medical and social service appointments, and legal proceedings.

Four Hayward police officers were sworn in Tuesday at a ceremony at City Hall.

Alan Reynaga, Mike Cristol, Joseph Ley and Sean Spillner officially joined the Hayward police force at the event attended by Mayor Mike Sweeney, City Manager Fran David and Police Chief Diane Urban.

Detective Ryan Cantrell was promoted to sergeant, and Mohammad Ali was sworn in as a reserve officer.

This loop’s for you

Those words were said in jest at a meeting Thursday to update folks on the Route 238 Corridor Improvement Project through Mission Boulevard and downtown, but they are a reminder that love it or hate it, the one-way traffic loop through downtown Hayward is coming soon.

At the meeting Thursday, city project manager Kevin Briggs said the loop will be put in place in March, though he did not yet have an exact date. A big unknown is when the massive signal bridges that will span Foothill will arrive. Deliverers of the bridges, which are being fabricated to order in Utah, have to get permits to drive the wide structures down roads in several states. Stay tuned.

Hayward staff members have been saying “spring” for when roadwork will be finished, but remember, spring is through late June. The delays have not been intentional; some have been weather, some have been the result of digging up streets and finding unexpected things underground (Hayward downtown is really old and maps aren’t always accurate; some have been because some water and gas lines were not set deep enough. Talking with city officials, it seems they would like for this to be finished ASAP.

Paving on south Mission is supposed to finish next week, so with any luck, traffic will improve in that area. And city staff members are aware that traffic is slow; Briggs was stuck on Mission Thursday trying to get to his meeting at City Hall.

This month’s Keep Hayward Clean and Green Cleanup will target the South Garden neighborhood in the northern part of the city this Saturday, Jan. 26.

Those interested in taking part in the litter cleanup and graffiti removal should gather at 8:30 a.m. at Shiloh Baptist Church, 22582 S. Garden Ave. Supplies will be provided, but bring your own gloves.

Those under age 18 need to be accompanied by an adult.

Hayward city officials will hold their monthly update meeting Thursday on the Route 238 Corridor Improvement Project that includes Foothill Boulevard south from Interstate 580 through downtown and Mission Boulevard from A Street south to Industrial Parkway.

Merchants along Foothill and A Street have asked that some on-street parking, which would be eliminated as part of the work, be restored. At Thursday’s meeting, city staff members are expected to show where they plan to allow parking.

The road project includes a one-way traffic “loop” through downtown. So far, the city has not said when the loop will go into effect.

The meeting begins at 9 a.m. Jan. 24 in Conference Room 2A at Hayward City Hall, 777 B St.

Road construction on the Route 238 Corridor project is focused on Mission Boulevard from St. Clement Church south to Industrial Parkway. The work will continue through Feb. 1. According to the city’s website, “access to driveways and intersections will be affected during the work.” I assume that means they will be blocked at least part of the time. Expect delays through the area.