THE 2014 MAP-21 REAUTHORIZATION PROCESS BEGINS
U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA) formally kicked off the federal transportation reauthorization process 
Wednesday. He said he hopes his Transportation and Infrastructure committee will be ready to act on reauthorization legislation by spring or early summer, and that the bill should be on the House floor before the August recess. MAP-21 expires Sept. 30.
Read more in Progressive Railroading.
Wednesday. He said he hopes his Transportation and Infrastructure committee will be ready to act on reauthorization legislation by spring or early summer, and that the bill should be on the House floor before the August recess. MAP-21 expires Sept. 30.Read more in Progressive Railroading.
LA TIMES EDITORIAL: LOCAL TRANSIT CONSTRUCTION SHOULD EQUAL LOCAL JOBS
Unfortunately, that's not necessarily the case because Metro and its contractors cannot steer jobs to local residents if the project receives federal funding. The agency can and has required that contractors hire 40% of workers from low-income areas but these areas can be anywhere in the USA.
The ban on targeted geographical hiring may have made sense in the past when the federal government put up most of the cost of transportation projects — if taxpayers nationwide paid for the project then workers nationwide should be hired to build it. But Los Angeles is paying most of the cost of its transportation projects with revenues from Measure R, the half-cent sales tax adopted by voters in 2008. LA County taxpayers are paying 80% of the cost of the Crenshaw Line, for example, in neighborhoods where jobs are desperately needed.
Fortunately Rep. Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) has introduced the Local Hire Act, which would change federal law to allow local hiring targets.
Read more in the LA Times editorial.
The ban on targeted geographical hiring may have made sense in the past when the federal government put up most of the cost of transportation projects — if taxpayers nationwide paid for the project then workers nationwide should be hired to build it. But Los Angeles is paying most of the cost of its transportation projects with revenues from Measure R, the half-cent sales tax adopted by voters in 2008. LA County taxpayers are paying 80% of the cost of the Crenshaw Line, for example, in neighborhoods where jobs are desperately needed.
Fortunately Rep. Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) has introduced the Local Hire Act, which would change federal law to allow local hiring targets.
Read more in the LA Times editorial.
THE SOURCE: METRO'S BOARD BEGINS CONSIDERATION OF ANOTHER BALLOT MEASURE
The Metro board of directors begins to discuss whether to put another sales tax measure 
before voters: This could be in 2014 or 2016. It could be either an extension of the existing Measure R half-cent sales tax adopted by voters in 2008 — which now expires in 2039 — or a new tax. Many people have been talking about the possibility of another tax ever since Measure J, which would have extended Measure R — received 66.1% of the vote, falling just shy of the required 66.7%. Writes Steve Hymon: "Persuading voters to extend an existing tax that they are already paying is presumably easier than selling them on paying a new tax. On the other hand, a new tax may also widen the field of projects that could receive funding, attracting support from more people . . . the staff report contains some recent polling results on that topic.
Read more.
before voters: This could be in 2014 or 2016. It could be either an extension of the existing Measure R half-cent sales tax adopted by voters in 2008 — which now expires in 2039 — or a new tax. Many people have been talking about the possibility of another tax ever since Measure J, which would have extended Measure R — received 66.1% of the vote, falling just shy of the required 66.7%. Writes Steve Hymon: "Persuading voters to extend an existing tax that they are already paying is presumably easier than selling them on paying a new tax. On the other hand, a new tax may also widen the field of projects that could receive funding, attracting support from more people . . . the staff report contains some recent polling results on that topic.Read more.
LA TIMES: FUNDING FOR SUBWAY AND REGIONAL CONNECTING IN SPENDING BILL BEFORE CONGRESS
The state overall takes a slight hit from a reduction in funding in the trillion dollar spending
bill before Congress this week, but LA Metro is likely to get some federal money for the Westside Subway and the downtown Regional Connector. The funding would cover a portion of the projected $2.8 billion first segment of the subway extension from Wilshire and Western to Wilshire and La Cienega, and also a portion of the $1.4 billion tunnel downtown that will link the Gold Line to the Blue Line and Expo Line.
Read more.
bill before Congress this week, but LA Metro is likely to get some federal money for the Westside Subway and the downtown Regional Connector. The funding would cover a portion of the projected $2.8 billion first segment of the subway extension from Wilshire and Western to Wilshire and La Cienega, and also a portion of the $1.4 billion tunnel downtown that will link the Gold Line to the Blue Line and Expo Line.Read more.
LA WINS THE PROMISE NEIGHBORHOODS SWEEPSTAKES, WHICH COULD INCLUDE MONEY FOR TRANSIT AND BIKE LANES
The White House has designated a swath of Los Angeles as one of five "Promise Zones" in the U.S., making these neighborhoods eligible for millions of dollars in federal resources to alleviate poverty. The designation gives Los Angeles preferential status for federal grants from numerous agencies, and could provide funding for affordable housing, public transit and bike lanes, education, public safety, and increased access to career and technical training through a partnership with the LA Community College District. The designated zone in LA stretches through Pico-Union, Westlake, Koreatown, East Hollywood and Hollywood.The four other zones are San Antonio, Philadelphia, southeastern Kentucky, and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. The designation lasts for 10 years.
Read more in the LA Times.
The number of people living in poverty in Southern California increased from 1.9 million in 1990 to 3.2 million in 2012. The U.S. Census estimates that when both income and the cost of living are taken into account 24% of Californians live in poverty, the highest poverty rate of any state. Stanford University and the Public Policy Institute have concluded LA County has the state’s highest poverty rate at 27%.
Read more HERE.
Read more in the LA Times.
The number of people living in poverty in Southern California increased from 1.9 million in 1990 to 3.2 million in 2012. The U.S. Census estimates that when both income and the cost of living are taken into account 24% of Californians live in poverty, the highest poverty rate of any state. Stanford University and the Public Policy Institute have concluded LA County has the state’s highest poverty rate at 27%.
Read more HERE.
NEW TRANSIT TOWN, CO-WRITTEN AND EDITED BY HANK DITTMAR AND MOVE LA’S GLORIA OHLAND, RATED ONE OF 100 BEST BOOKS ON CITY MAKING EVER WRITTEN
After looking over his extensive library of books on urbanism, Brent Toderian chose the 100 best books that he's collected and read over the years. The New Transit Town: Best Practices in Transit-Oriented Development was #68 on his list, which included books by such renown urbanist-authors as Jane Jacobs, William H. Whyte, Robert Caro, Frederick Law Olmstead, Richard Florida, Christopher Leinberger, and Peter Calthorpe. Written in 2004 and published by Island Press, the book includes chapters on best practices in zoning, financing, traffic and parking, "The Transit-Oriented Drama and its Actors," and case studies on the Rosslyn Ballston Corridor just outside Washington DC, Mockingbird Station and Addison Circle in Dallas, Lindbergh City Center in Atlanta, Ohlone-Chynoweth Station in San Jose, and the Barrio Logan/Mercado project in San Diego. Authors included Gloria and Hank, Shelley Poticha, Scott Bernstein and several other TOD experts.The Planetizen post is HERE.
The book is still available on Amazon HERE.
MOVE LA & MEASURE R FEATURED IN DUKAKIS CENTER STUDY ON TRANSPORTATION FINANCE
A new paper researched and written by the Conservation Law Foundation in partnership with the Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy at Northeastern University in Boston features 10 case studies about transportation finance including Measure R. Move LA Executive Director Denny Zane was then asked to participate in a series of "learning conversations" allowing stakeholders in Massachusetts to find out more about how the Measure R campaign was waged. The full paper can be downloaded HERE, but the key lessons from LA are these, according to the paper:
Support for transit projects in large geographic areas requires bundling with road improvements. To elicit broad-based support for Measure R, participants in the campaign early on decided that a mix of rail and bus transit and highway projects was necessary. A multi-modal approach made it possible to provide benefits across LA County, since not all areas could benefit from the transit improvements. The expenditure plan was carefully calibrated to make sure that no part of the county could say that they were not receiving any benefit.
Coalitions of unusual bedfellows are more effective.Zane’s success in bringing together representatives from the environmental, labor, and business communities, who had never worked together before and literally had never visited each others’ offices, and getting them to agree to collaborate, sent a powerful signal to decision-makers. As a result, elected officials, including the Mayor and Metro board members, realized that tackling the transportation revenue problem in 2008 had legs, which brought to the table not only their support but also their leadership.
Polling is a crucial tool in campaign development and implementation. The various polls conducted by Metro, the Mayor, Move LA, and Yes on Measure R helped convince Metro and others to initiate the campaign, shaped the exact language of the ballot question, and perfected the public message used to round up support for the measure. County Supervisor Yaroslavsky, whose support was seen by many as critical, remained non-committal until Move LA conducted a poll and Metro confirmed its results with its own poll. The Mayor, in turn, conducted a third poll, before he got on board. Likewise, the carefully crafted public message, that took into account voters interests and concerns and was so important to the close result, could not have been developed without polling.
A charismatic leader can get the ball rolling and help overcome adversity. While the circumstances in 2007 clearly were ripe for a transportation finance campaign, someone had to convene the stakeholders. It is fair to say that without Zane there would not have been a Measure R campaign. Zane’s ability to bring people together and his willingness to take a risk kick started this effort and likely carried it through.
Legal hurdles can be overcome despite a tight ballot timeline. Leaders did not give up when faced with hurdles ranging from LA County’s refusal to consolidate the ballot to the legislative changes required to allow the duration of the sales tax to be extended and to permit Metro to collect taxes. While these obstacles seemed insurmountable on a tight deadline, the time constraints ultimately worked in the campaign’s favor, motivating the legislature to respond quickly.
Support for transit projects in large geographic areas requires bundling with road improvements. To elicit broad-based support for Measure R, participants in the campaign early on decided that a mix of rail and bus transit and highway projects was necessary. A multi-modal approach made it possible to provide benefits across LA County, since not all areas could benefit from the transit improvements. The expenditure plan was carefully calibrated to make sure that no part of the county could say that they were not receiving any benefit.
Coalitions of unusual bedfellows are more effective.Zane’s success in bringing together representatives from the environmental, labor, and business communities, who had never worked together before and literally had never visited each others’ offices, and getting them to agree to collaborate, sent a powerful signal to decision-makers. As a result, elected officials, including the Mayor and Metro board members, realized that tackling the transportation revenue problem in 2008 had legs, which brought to the table not only their support but also their leadership.
Polling is a crucial tool in campaign development and implementation. The various polls conducted by Metro, the Mayor, Move LA, and Yes on Measure R helped convince Metro and others to initiate the campaign, shaped the exact language of the ballot question, and perfected the public message used to round up support for the measure. County Supervisor Yaroslavsky, whose support was seen by many as critical, remained non-committal until Move LA conducted a poll and Metro confirmed its results with its own poll. The Mayor, in turn, conducted a third poll, before he got on board. Likewise, the carefully crafted public message, that took into account voters interests and concerns and was so important to the close result, could not have been developed without polling.
A charismatic leader can get the ball rolling and help overcome adversity. While the circumstances in 2007 clearly were ripe for a transportation finance campaign, someone had to convene the stakeholders. It is fair to say that without Zane there would not have been a Measure R campaign. Zane’s ability to bring people together and his willingness to take a risk kick started this effort and likely carried it through.
Legal hurdles can be overcome despite a tight ballot timeline. Leaders did not give up when faced with hurdles ranging from LA County’s refusal to consolidate the ballot to the legislative changes required to allow the duration of the sales tax to be extended and to permit Metro to collect taxes. While these obstacles seemed insurmountable on a tight deadline, the time constraints ultimately worked in the campaign’s favor, motivating the legislature to respond quickly.
NEW LA RAIL STATIONS WILL ALL HAVE A UNIFORM DESIGN
Most of LA's rail stations have unique identities intended to reflect the character and history of the neighborhoods in which they are located and incorporating art by local artists. Some are quite stunning — including the Green Line's El Segundo station (adjacent 
to the aerospace industry) with a sculpture of a large hand launching a paper airplane, and the Red Line's Vermont/Beverly station with its boulder-studded ceiling — and some are clearly not (these will go unmentioned). But now Metro has decided new stations will all have a signature look . . .
See the design and read more HERE.
to the aerospace industry) with a sculpture of a large hand launching a paper airplane, and the Red Line's Vermont/Beverly station with its boulder-studded ceiling — and some are clearly not (these will go unmentioned). But now Metro has decided new stations will all have a signature look . . .See the design and read more HERE.
THIS IS WHAT LOS ANGELES COULD LOOK LIKE IN 2033
More and more stories about the transformation of LA keep appearing (see the link to Christopher Hawthorne's recent LA Times piece on our blog). The most recent is on Huffington Post, where Kathleen Miles discusses 20 transformative projects — some in planning, some almost underway and most of them in downtown LA — ranging from plans to cap the 101 freeway in order to create more park space downtown to the 51-mile LA River greenway project, and including:
~ the first rail projects to reach the Westside (the subway and Expo)
~ hi-speed rail (well, hopefully)
~ the re-do of 4 miles of Figueroa downtown as a "complete street," with bus shelters and transit platforms, a bikeway, bike racks, more crosswalks, and trees and art
~ the upgrade of Union Station following a lengthy master planning process.
Miles writes: "Outsiders stereotype Los Angeles as car-addicted, polluted and lacking in public transit. But the City of Angels has undergone major changes over the past few decades.LA is moving toward a greener future, friendlier to pedestrians, metro users and bicyclists. There are various development projects planned, particularly in downtown and Hollywood, which are becoming more dense and vertically-built. These projects preserve historic architecture while adding apartments, parks, retail and entertainment. . . "
See 20 architectural renderings and project descriptions HERE.
~ the first rail projects to reach the Westside (the subway and Expo)
~ hi-speed rail (well, hopefully)
~ the re-do of 4 miles of Figueroa downtown as a "complete street," with bus shelters and transit platforms, a bikeway, bike racks, more crosswalks, and trees and art
~ the upgrade of Union Station following a lengthy master planning process.
Miles writes: "Outsiders stereotype Los Angeles as car-addicted, polluted and lacking in public transit. But the City of Angels has undergone major changes over the past few decades.LA is moving toward a greener future, friendlier to pedestrians, metro users and bicyclists. There are various development projects planned, particularly in downtown and Hollywood, which are becoming more dense and vertically-built. These projects preserve historic architecture while adding apartments, parks, retail and entertainment. . . "
See 20 architectural renderings and project descriptions HERE.
DISTURBING INCREASE IN POVERTY IN 6-COUNTY SOCAL REGION
Numbers released at the 4th Annual Economic Recovery & Job Creation Summit last month found that 3.2 million people were living in poverty in 2012, up from 1.9 million in 1990. At the summit — hosted by the Southern California Association of Governments and the Southern California Leadership Council — participants spoke passionately about the need for unprecedented collaboration at the federal, state and local levels around job creation, workforce development, project streamlining, tax credit incentives and eliminating non-performing programs — with the goal of restoring the American middle class.
A Sunday LA Times opinion piece (Jan. 5) on increasing the minimum wage in California ("How California can raise all boats") noted that the U.S. Census recently estimated that when both income and the cost of living are taken into account 24% of Californians live in poverty, the highest poverty rate of any state. Stanford University and the Public Policy Institute have concluded LA County has the state's highest poverty rate at 27%.
Read more on SCAG's new Regional Economic Strategy and Data website HERE.
Read the LA Times opinion piece HERE.
A Sunday LA Times opinion piece (Jan. 5) on increasing the minimum wage in California ("How California can raise all boats") noted that the U.S. Census recently estimated that when both income and the cost of living are taken into account 24% of Californians live in poverty, the highest poverty rate of any state. Stanford University and the Public Policy Institute have concluded LA County has the state's highest poverty rate at 27%.
Read more on SCAG's new Regional Economic Strategy and Data website HERE.
Read the LA Times opinion piece HERE.