The third time may be the charm, as we’re finally headed for the Metro Board of Directors’ Special Meeting to discuss the Long Range Transportation Plan, which will outline how construction of the Foothill Extension will be funded. We had two previous false calls in the past few months about this elusive meeting (you didn’t hear about it because we removed all references to it – twice). It’s here and is set to take place at the usual Metro Board Room inside the MTA building at 1 PM tomorrow.
While we reported last week that the workshop was going to be a public comment and discussion forum for what projects should be included into the Long Range Transportation Plan, it turns out that may no longer be the only thing happening for that meeting. It is very possible that the board will vote to adopt the plan at the meeting, rather than listen to public comment tomorrow and vote on the plan June 25th.
The problem is that none of the information was made public until late Wednesday afternoon, when Metro posted the staff report on its website here.
For San Gabriel Valley residents, it is important to remember what’s at stake in the plan. Metro has allocated $743 million for the Foothill Extension — $10.3 million in the coming fiscal year that begins July 1, which Metro approved last month. The allocation is larger than what Measure R afforded but it does not account for getting the line open to Azusa in 2013. Metro still needs to fund the operation of the line. That’s a fight for another day.
If you can make the meeting, that would be great, but because Metro was coy about the plan and potential of a vote we understand if you can’t attend. Of course, for those not attending, we’ll be covering the meeting live on our Twitter feed @iwillride. You can also listen live by calling in at (213) 922-6045.