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By Olin Ericksen
Staff`Writer
April 2 – Facing a deadline for public comment
Monday, West Los Angeles homeowners have been working to reroute
a light rail line slated to end in Santa Monica, where City
officials have pumped $35 million in the hopes their beachside
city will be the final stop.
Council members registered their strong disapproval last
month for a route proposed by some Cheviot Hills residents
at a packed meeting March 15 that would follow Venice Boulevard
and skip Santa Monica altogether, despite years of planning
and lobbying by City officials.
Of the three paths being considered by the Exposition Metro
Line Construction Authority, the agency established to link
a light rail line from Downtown Los Angeles to the beach by
2015, the other two would end in Santa Monica.
"I think it's important we have the most direct route
to Santa Monica and that we would oppose any realignment that
would take this outside Santa Monica to take it to a different
destination," said Council member Pam O'Connor, the first
vice chair of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
The comments March 20 came nearly two years after newly elected
Los Angeles City Council member Bill Rosendahl suggested that
there may have been a political tussle brewing over where
the light rail should end.
While Rosendahl, who represents the 11th District on LA’s
Westside, later assured Santa Monica officials that he backed
making their city the end of the line, local officials are
facing opposition from some Cheviot Hills homeowners, who
must meet a Monday deadline to submit written comments.
Homeowners fear that using the former Southern Pacific right
of way that borders Cheviot Hills – the most direct
route for the proposed line – will make traffic worse,
bring crime and graffiti, endanger schools and lead to declining
property values.
To counter, the proposal, City officials are making it clear
where they stand.
"City staff will. . . note that an alternative that
does not serve Santa Monica will be completely unacceptable,"
read the City staff report.
Just what route will be chosen for the second and final leg
of the light rail line from Downtown Los Angeles, which is
estimated to cost $800 million, could be finalized in the
next few months. The first leg to Culver City is currently
under construction.
In addition to opposing the proposal that bypasses Santa
Monica, council members at the March 20 meeting supported
the most direct path into their city, following an existing
right-of-way along Exposition Boulevard.
The other proposed route to Santa Monica would add approximately
one mile of track along Sepulveda Boulevard and Venice Boulevard,
before linking back up at Exposition Boulevard near the 405
Freeway and coming into Santa Monica.
Some residents in the Cheviot Hills Homeowners Association
have pushed hard and publicly for the longer route -- expected
to span 7.8 miles -- to have the rail bypass their neighborhood.
Other Cheviot Hills residents have expressed support for the
shorter 6.9- mile route.
In addition to making recommendations on the path, Council
members last month adopted a Planning Commission proposal
that asks Construction Authorities to consider adding a third
Santa Monica station near Santa Monica College on 17th Street
on the public right of way, running parallel to Olympic Boulevard
The station would serve “Santa Monica College to the
south, UCLA hospital to the north, a lot of businesses, and
a lot of high-density apartments that are in that Mid-city
area that would be in close range," Planning Commissioner
Daryl Clarke told the council.
Currently, four possible Santa Monica sites are being considered
for the project, according to maps unveiled at a March 6 public
meeting.
However, transit officials have said fewer stops would keep
ridership high and the line a success.
Currently two stations are likely under consideration --
Bergamot Station and a site on Colorado and Fourth Street,
the proposed light rail terminus, where the City recently
purchased a building from Sears for $35 million. |
