Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority Holds Kick-Off Meeting for Azusa to Montclair Segment

The Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority provided the following news release.

Today, the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority (Construction Authority) hosted a kick-off meeting for the much-anticipated Azusa to Montclair segment of the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension light rail line.

The 12.3-mile project will extend light rail service from the current terminus under construction in the city of Azusa, to the cities of Glendora, San Dimas, La Verne, Pomona, Claremont and Montclair.

“This is an important time for the project,” stated Construction Authority CEO, Habib F. Balian. “Over the next two years, we will take this project from a less than 10% design understanding to a point where we will be ready for a design-build procurement. This will be a period of hard work for the Construction Authority and our partner cities, but it will definitely pay off as we ready the project for construction.”

Presenting to a capacity-filled room of federal, state and local officials, station artists, and key stakeholders, a panel of four speakers provided details on the next steps in the process to advance engineering and station art for the project. The panel – consisting of Construction Authority CEO Habib Balian, Chief Project Officer Chris Burner, Station Environment Coordinator Tanya Patsaouras, and Public Art Program Manager Lesley Elwood – provided the attendees updates on the latest station design criteria, choices cities will have regarding station colors and materials, the schedule for advanced conceptual engineering and station art development, and much more.

A Locally Preferred Alternative was selected earlier this year by the Construction Authority board of directors, following environmental review and clearance of the project under the California Environmental Policy Act (CEQA). Since that time, the Construction Authority has developed the scope of work to advance the necessary design, engineering and station art planning. The agency is set to begin the advanced conceptual engineering early next year.

“We want the cities to understand what they can expect during this next phase of work for the project,” explained Balian. “We want them to start envisioning what their station could look like, as well as what they can be doing now to plant the seeds for future land development and connectivity to local points of interest from their future stations. It all starts now.”