We covered the meeting live on Twitter @iwillride, but in case you missed it or would like something more in-depth, here’s a summary of the meeting recently sent out by Habib Balian on what happened with the Fasana motion:

I wrote to you earlier this week that the Metro board was going to consider a motion by Board Director John Fasana to immediately amend the existing Long Range Transportation Plan to include all Measure R projects, including the Gold Line Foothill Extension.

Today, the board once again delayed taking any action to approve a revised LRTP based on Measure R. However, during the debate on the Fasana motion, we got some answers we have been seeking for several months:

• The LRTP won’t be considered until the May meeting at the earliest and possibly not until the June meeting, which will be less than two weeks before Metro begins collecting the Measure R half-cent sales tax.
• Incoming CEO Art Leahy will influence the funding allocations and timelines of the Measure R projects. Staff acknowledged they were waiting for Leahy to start the job on April 6 before moving forward. You’ll recall Metro released a draft LRTP in January but it was immediately tabled to wait for the President to sign the federal stimulus package.

Procedurally, the board voted 7-5 on a motion by Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky to move the Fasana proposal to the Planning and Programming Committee for further discussion. We’ll keep you posted if the panel considers the item.

We want to thank Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard, Glendora City Councilmember Doug Tessitor and Duarte City Councilmember Tzeitel Paras-Caracci for testifying in support of the Fasana motion. Collectively, they urged the board to move forward so the Foothill Extension can be built quickly, relieve congestion in the San Gabriel Valley and stimulate the economy of Los Angeles County.

Though he voted to send the motion to committee for more discussion, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said: “People of LA County are in support of the extension of the Gold Line, they voted for it.”

The Journey Continues…

Habib F. Balian