"California high-speed rail sets aside $30 million to buy Union Station
The hub is slated to be a major stop on the 800-mile statewide bullet train system. The money would also go toward purchase of land in downtown L.A."
You know what? This really smells. They're buying a piece of the LA Union Station as a public relations marketing move. It's meant to appease those LA Basin HSR supporters who are disappointed with the proposed initial construction in the Central Valley.
'Don't worry, friends,' they are telling us with this move. 'We will be going to the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco. We will also be going to the LA Union Station. We're getting federal funding to spend on both terminals.' In other words, they are staking out their terrain, the way that dogs mark their territories, if you know what I mean.
And, they intend to use federal ARRA stimulus funds for this purchase. I thought that those funds were intended for "shovel ready" construction work to ease unemployment. But, that's not what this looks like.
Who knows how long it will be before they start HSR construction there in either the LA Basin or on the Peninsula. They don't have the money now and it doesn't look like they'll have it for a long time, if ever. Is the CHSRA getting into the land speculation businesses? Are they going to flip properties for profit?
Yes, the MTC should develop this station for greater urban and regional public mass transit purposes.
However, the CHSRA should be putting all it's eggs into the Central Valley basket first and make that totally operational before they "lick all the spoons" elsewhere. That's what the law requires.
There are many highly questionable decisions. For example, the LA to San Diego LOSSAN route is one of the most heavily travelled routes in the US. Why aren't they building a segment of the HSR there? And, how did Anaheim get into the LA to SF route scenario? Anaheim isn't on the main trunk line, it's a spur. The short answer is, politics. Indeed, that's the best explanation for all their decisions including this new one about buying the LA station.
This LA station purchase betrays their agenda of making chess moves that lock in their empire before it even begins to exist. Make no mistake, this HSR project is a government-funded (our money) imposition on the state. What the rail authority is now proposing -- and what the realities are -- is not what the voters voted for. They, and we, are being scammed.
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latimes.com
California high-speed rail sets aside $30 million to buy Union Station
The hub is slated to be a major stop on the 800-mile statewide bullet train system. The money would also go toward purchase of land in downtown L.A.
By Rich Connell, Los Angeles Times
January 20, 2011
California's High-Speed Rail Authority announced Wednesday that it is earmarking more than $30 million for land acquisition and related projects in the Los Angeles area, much of it expected to go toward buying downtown's Union Station.
The historic rail hub, which would be jointly purchased with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, is slated to be a major stop on the 800-mile statewide bullet train system. Officials want control of the 38-acre site so they can make improvements needed to handle an expected surge in passenger traffic from a proposed Westside subway extension and a new downtown rail connection, as well as high-speed rail. About 50,000 people a day use the station now, according to the MTA.
Wednesday's announcement was designed partly to bolster broader geographic support for the controversial, $43-billion high-speed train project. A recent decision to build the first $5.5-billion section of track in the largely rural Central Valley has drawn criticism, including from some high-speed rail backers.
The commitment of funds, part of $3 billion in federal stimulus grants, shows "high-speed rail is coming to Southern California," said Valerie Martinez, a Los Angeles spokeswoman for the project.
The funds will ensure that the state rail agency has access to Union Station, officials said. Some of the money could be used to improve track connections that will benefit Metrolink and Amtrak riders before the start of bullet train service, Martinez said.
When and if funding will be available to begin high-speed service between the Bay Area and Southern California remains uncertain.
The price tag for Union Station is confidential, but the bulk of the money is expected to come from the MTA. Negotiations with private equity firm TPG Capital, which is buying the property from Colorado-based ProLogis, are winding up. A deal could be concluded by late February, said Roger Moliere, MTA's chief of property management.
Public ownership of the art deco/Spanish revival station, which opened in 1939, will ensure its preservation, officials said. And millions of square feet of development rights around the station could be used to increase income, which now includes payments from train operators, restaurant concessions and film location fees, Moliere said.
rich.connell@latimes.com
Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times
