The Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority (Construction Authority) on Aug. 15, held a dedication ceremony for the Duarte/City of Hope Station, the first in a series of dedications to celebrate the upcoming substantial completion of construction for the six-station, 11.5-mile light rail project from Pasadena to Azusa. The event was attended by elected officials at all levels of government, transportation officials and hundreds of community stakeholders. The Foothill Gold Line project, which broke ground in June 2010, is on time and on budget to be turned over to Metro for pre-revenue service in late-September 2015. Metro anticipates starting pre-revenue service this Fall, and passenger service in 2016. An opening date has not yet been determined.
“It is an honor to be here to thank so many of you here today who lobbied and rallied in support of this project for over a decade and for the men and women who safely built this project on time and on budget,” stated Habib F. Balian, CEO of the Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority. “This tremendous success is due in part to the grassroots support for this project and the partnership between the Foothill Gold Line cities, the Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority and Metro.
In attendance at the dedication were dozens of local officials. Speakers included U.S. Representative Grace Napolitano, State Senator Carol Liu, Assembly Majority Floor Leader Chris R. Holden, Assemblymember Roger Hernández, Los Angeles County Supervisors and Metro Board Member Michael D. Antonovich, Metro CEO Phil Washington and City of Hope CEO Robert Stone. Metro and Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority Board Member, Duarte City Councilman John Fasana, was the event’s emcee; and Duarte Mayor Tzeitel Paras-Caracci welcomed everyone to the event and talked about the changes that are envisioned for the area near the station.
“I want everyone to look behind me and join me for a moment as we look into the future,” stated Mayor Paras-Caracci. “The Gold Line has provided the city the opportunity to re-envision this area of Duarte with new housing, office space and even the city’s first hotel. All within walking distance to light rail and therefore within walking distance to all of Los Angeles County.”
The Duarte/City of Hope station is located on Duarte Road, just west of Highland Avenue; across the street from the City of Hope National Medical Center. The station was fully revealed to the public for the first time at the dedication, including the unique artwork created by the Wisconsin-based artist team of Andrea Myklebust and Stanton Gray Sears. Titled “Spirit of the San Gabriel River,” the artwork incorporates the city of Duarte’s history and culture and includes four hand-carved Indiana Limestone sculptures, each weighing between 3,300 and 3,600 pounds, atop specialty cut metal painted pillars. On the ground below the sculptures are eight-inch-square cast bronze pavers patterned after the orange blossoms, branches and fruit reminiscent of citrus labels used to transport and sell the fruit grown in Duarte in decades past.
