The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) announced Wednesday it will release its final Environmental Impact Statement/Report (EIS/EIR) for the Regional Connector Project on Jan. 20 for a 30-day public review period.
Metro has also scheduled two community open houses Feb. 7 and 8 in Downtown L.A. to allow the public to learn more about the project and the report.
The Regional Connector, a Measure R transportation project, is a proposed fully underground light rail line that will connect the Metro Gold Line to the Metro Blue Line and soon-to-open Expo Line.
The final EIS/EIR contains recommendations for the nearly two-mile alignment and three station locations. The report also includes recommendations for environmental mitigations for the project.
The Metro Board is expected to consider the report recommendations at its Feb. 23 meeting. Pending funding approval, construction could begin in 2013.
The Regional Connector will connect the Metro Gold Line, Blue Line and Expo Line, enabling passengers to eventually travel from Montclair to Long Beach and from East Los Angeles to Santa Monica as a “one-seat ride.”
By providing continuous through service between these lines, the Regional Connector will improve access to both local and regional destinations and greatly improve the connectivity of the transportation network for the region.
The report will be available at www.metro.net/regionalconnector or by visiting a public library throughout the project area. A list of these libraries also will be available on the website.
The community open houses will enable attendees to view report exhibits at their own pace, and Metro staff and consultants will be available to clarify and answer any questions.
The schedule is as follows:
• Tuesday, Feb. 7, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Colburn School of Music, 200 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles.
• Wednesday, Feb. 8, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Japanese American National Museum, 369 E. First St., Los Angeles.
Content at each open house will be identical. Japanese, Korean and Spanish translation will be provided.
Special ADA accommodations will be available to the public for Metro-sponsored meetings. All requests for reasonable accommodations must be made at least three working days (72 hours) in advance of the scheduled meeting date. Call the project information line at (213) 922-6934. The TDD line is (800) 252-9040.
The Regional Connector Transit Corridor Study commenced in 2007 with the development of the Alternatives Analysis, which looked at over 30 potential alternatives. In 2009, the Metro Board of Directors approved the initiation of the draft EIS/EIR to analyze four alternatives.
A fifth alternative was added to the study. It was identified as the “Locally Preferred Alternative” in October 2010. The LPA was then further refined to address community comments regarding potential construction impacts.
Portions of the draft EIS/EIR were recirculated during the summer of 2011. Public comments on the final EIS/EIR will be accepted through Feb. 20.
Comments may be submitted via email to regionalconnector@metro.net. Alternately, comments can be sent by U.S. mail to: Dolores Roybal-Saltarelli, Project Manager, One Gateway Plaza, 99-22-2 Los Angeles, CA, 90012. The public may also comment on Metro’s website by clicking on “Contact us.”
I don’t know what’s left to say except build it, give Little Tokyo its own subway station and make getting to Japanese Village Plaza, JANM and the rest of Little Tokyo easier.