Ken Alpern, a former board member with the Mar Vista Community Council and current co-chair of the council's transportation committee, takes on the Expo Line at-grade crossing issue on the CityWatch website. Brave man! He supports Metro's idea of adding a stop at Farmdale Avenue, site of Dorsey High School, to address safety concerns; an option many in the community do not like, instead wanting the line separated from traffic. "I also believe that those insisting on 'a tunnel or nothing' or 'build it right or don’t build it at all' might as well be screaming for an at-grade crossing at the top of their lungs." Alpern believes the call for expensive tunnels won't be "tolerated anymore... screaming for perfection when the voters want these projects done will enjoy little to no tolerance by Downtown, Sacramento or Washington."
Alpern also dives into the race issue, referencing both a South LA local and the former head of the Cheviot Hills Homeowners Association, both of whom have made racially-charged comments regarding the Expo Line. Alpern writes, "But the [racial] blowback will likely ram the Expo Line through sooner, and not later, because despite our City and County race-obsession (again, arguably a form of New Racism), ordinary citizens and political leaders just don’t have time or patience for another drawn-out discussion on race when our lives are destroyed by traffic and we need economic and City/County renewal."
The California Public Utilities Commission is currently weighing whether a station at Farmdale is safe enough, or further measures like a tunnel or riser are necessary.
· A Race to Erase Race From the Expo Line [CityWatch]
· Farmdale Station Still Getting No Love From Locals [Curbed LA]
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