Below is a statement by Foothill Gold Line CEO Habib F. Balian in response to the SBCTA board’s vote on September 3, 2025 to not support completing the Foothill Gold Line to Montclair.
As you know, the Construction Authority is now underway with the first of two procurements to deliver the final Foothill Gold Line project segment from Pomona to Claremont and Montclair. The first RFP for design/engineering services was issued this past June, with proposals due next month. This follows Los Angeles County committing nearly $800 million last year to complete their portion of the project, and meets the schedule approved by the Construction Authority board earlier this year. As part of the ongoing procurement, the Los Angeles County portion of the project was kept separate from the San Bernardino County portion to allow clear understanding of the different costs for each county, and also to allow more time for SBCTA to agree to fund the design work.
I am writing to update you that the SBCTA board of directors met today and had a lengthy discussion on whether or not to continue to support completing the Foothill Gold Line to Montclair. Although SBCTA has been planning for the project for more than two decades (since 2004, when the project was included in the county’s successful half-cent sales tax measure; and since 2012, when the Construction Authority’s enabling legislation was updated to extend the agency’s authority to build to Montclair), the SBCTA board today decided to stop negotiating a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Construction Authority, not approve the funding needed to include the Montclair extension with the design procurement currently underway, and directed their staff to study options to connect Montclair with improved transit using the $37 million in local funding the agency has been holding to complete the Foothill Gold Line to Montclair.
As I stated last week, the Construction Authority has been working closely with SBCTA over the past several months to come to agreement on a working relationship in which the Construction Authority has the authority to design and build the project and SBCTA has significant opportunities to provide input into the process. But SBCTA did not accept the terms of that agreement; and today their board confirmed their fundamental concern – not wanting an outside agency having authority to make decisions in their county. This is despite the Construction Authority’s statutorily mandated role to plan, design and build the project; as well as our successful track record of completing $3 billion of projects on time and on budget.
Construction Authority Board Chair, Claremont Council Member Ed Reece attended today’s meeting and spoke about the significant benefits the project would have for San Bernardino County. He and Foothill Gold Line Joint Powers Authority Secretary/Treasurer, Montclair Council Member Bill Ruh both highlighted the economic and mobility benefits of the project for San Bernardino County and its residents. Both quoted from the recent economic analysis that showed San Bernardino County is expected to gain $1.4 million for every $1 million they invest in the construction, and $3.5 million for every $1 million they invest in operation of the line. These benefits are in addition to the jobs and labor income associated with activities both during construction and after operations; as well as the economic impact of the transit-oriented developments planned around the future Montclair light rail station. Additionally, they highlighted the strong relationship between people living in each county and traveling for work to the other (both from San Bernardino County to Los Angeles and vice versa), including tens of thousands traveling between cities in western San Bernardino County and the Foothill Gold Line cities in Los Angeles County. To learn more about the economic analysis, click here. I thank them both for their efforts.
Today’s vote was not unanimous and went against a motion presented by Montclair Mayor John Dutrey and Chino Hills Council Member Ray Marquez to continue to work on the MOU. While it is not the end of the line for the Gold Line to reach Montclair, today’s vote was a significant setback, as it results in the Montclair extension not moving forward simultaneously with the Claremont portion of the final project segment. In the coming weeks, the Construction Authority staff and board will discuss next steps.
The Journey Continues,
Habib