[note: for our readers who receive our blog posts via email, an inadvertent draft of today’s article was sent out to your inboxes this morning. It was a mistake on ours and FeedBurner’s part (mostly FeedBurner – really mostly FeedBurner). Ignore that one! Thanks]

At least that’s what the upcoming iconic bridge means for Arcadia City Councilman Robert Harbicht. The San Gabriel Valley Tribune recently ran a story on the status of the site-testing for the bridge. While construction is about a year away, the progress is significant, as Harbicht told the newspaper:

“The San Gabriel Valley has been working very hard…to identify itself as a region, partly because of the political clout we should have, since we have 2 million people living here,” Harbicht said. “While it’s (the bridge) technically in Arcadia, we see it as more of a regional kind of thing.”

Of course, the preparation for the bridge is in anticipation of the arrival of the Gold Line Foothill Extension. We hope Councilman Harbicht agrees with us that a viable 21st century light-rail transportation system, combined with an iconic landmark, will put the San Gabriel Valley on the map and give it the distinction and recognition it deserves throughout Los Angeles County.

In our update on the bridge last week, we were wondering what the iconic structure would eventually look like. The process to pick a final design involves an 11-member panel, made up of various public officials from around the San Gabriel Valley and Caltrans, making a recommendation for the Construction Authority’s Board of Directors to consider on July 22, the day before the next Metro Board meeting. We’re eagerly anticipating the decision so we can see the winning design and celebrate another big step forward for the Foothill Extension. Unfortunately (in a fortunate way), for those who have seen the designs at the Authority, even they might have a hard time knowing what the final design of the bridge will encapsulate, as the Authority’s public art consultant Lesley Elwood explained to the Tribune:

“I did look at all the slide images that have been sent in and all of the sketches and I would say the committee would have trouble honing in on one,” Elwood said. “That’s a good thing.”

Many good things are coming for the San Gabriel Valley.

Link to full story: Valley gateway across the 210 Freeway moves closer to reality

If you remember, the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority held an open bid for artists to submit designs for an iconic gateway structure over the 210 Freeway in Arcadia. Specifically, it will be a 739-foot railway bridge that will span the 210’s eastbound lanes near the Santa Anita Avenue exit.

Not wanting to waste or wait another minute, the Authority recently started prep work (see images below) on the bridge that will welcome drivers and future Foothill Extension riders to the San Gabriel Valley – from South Pasadena to Montclair. (What will it look like? Who knows? That’s the fun.) From the latest email update sent yesterday from Foothill Extension Construction Authority Chief Executive Officer Habib Balian: “…workers will be extracting soil samples from 100 feet below the surface in the right-of-way adjacent to Newcastle Park and along the eastbound lanes of the freeway. The soil will be analyzed to help engineers design the foundation for the bridge.”

The prep work is being done in anticipation of the Foothill Extension securing a commitment from Metro to build the line. Metro has included sufficient funding for construction to begin next June in the draft Long Range Transportation Plan, which is expected to be considered at the July 23 meeting. If Metro approves the LRTP with the Foothill Extension’s funding as is, then the Authority will be ready for everything to fall into place.

As for the design of the bridge, the Authority has received proposals from artists (video). The proposal period ended yesterday and, according to the schedule in the Request For Qualifications, the Authority’s board of directors is expected to select the artist at its July 22 meeting. We hope to hear more about this soon.

Click on the images below for a larger view.

Earlier this week we posted a story from the Pasadena Star-News about an open design bid for an “iconic” bridge over the 210 freeway in anticipation of the construction and opening of the Gold Line Foothill Extension. We recently received an important update from Habib Balian that all artists who are submitting design bids should be aware of. The email is pasted below. Important information in bold.

In case you didn’t get a chance to see it, the Pasadena Star-News on Saturday ran a story, along with a photo gallery on the website, featuring the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority’s plans to build an iconic, gateway bridge over the 210 Freeway in Arcadia. We invited artists to examine the site – which will span the freeway, high above the roadway – so they could get a feel for the magnitude of the project.

Since the article appeared on Saturday we have received numerous inquiries, and we have decided to extend the submission deadline one month to May 26. For more information, please see the request for qualifications.

To accommodate what we expect to be international interest in shaping this landmark, an additional Pre-Qualification Conference was scheduled for April 24. The Authority is seeking to conduct a live feed video teleconference for the benefit of the many out of the area artists that have expressed interest.

This is a milestone moment in our progress. We are continuing to do everything we can to be ready to turn dirt when funding from Metro comes through.

The Journey Continues…..

Habib F. Balian

(image courtesy of Pasadena Star-News)

Plain vanilla Caltrans bridges are out, iconic gateway bridges are in.

From the Pasadena Star-News, in anticipation of the construction of the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension, artists are being asked to submit proposals for the design of a bridge over the 210 freeway that will serve as an “iconic statement and a gateway to the San Gabriel Valley.” The 739-foot bridge will span the 210’s eastbound lanes near the Santa Anita Avenue exit, welcoming drivers and future Foothill Extension riders to the San Gabriel Valley.

The Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority will be accepting artists’ qualifications and submissions at the link below until April 28.

Link to full story: Welcome to the Valley: Proposed bridge would become region’s landmark

Link to download the proposal: Metro Gold Line – Business Opportunities