Files related to 710
- Map of the tunnel (Alhambra entrance): remember, no on-ramps and off-ramps in the tunnel, and the entrance in Alhambra would not be at Valley, but it would be south of the 10 fwy.
- Payments to Leland Dolley (pdf) : over $1.8 million paid to City of Alhambra lobbyist from 2006-Jan. 2014
Articles on our council members
- Alhambra Source: Councilwoman Barbara Messina Violates Brown Act
- Letter to Editor: LA Register: City of Alhambra is Misleading Alhambrans – Messina contradicts herself (July 5, 2014)
Articles about 710 & Alhambra
- The Sydney Morning Herald: Doctors fear health impact of NorthConnex tunnel pollution (sounds just like Alhambra!)
- San Gabriel Valley Tribune: 710 Tunnel No Solution to Alhambra’s Traffic
- South Pasadena Now: Digging in for 710 Tunnel Fight
- Pasadena Star News: Raising the Alarm…
- Pasadena Star News: South Pasadena, La Canada Flintridge Join Forces… but “Alhambra, a strong proponent of the extension, isn’t enthused with the Alliance.”
- The Sierra Madre Tattler: The City of Alhambra Must be This Real Burning Hotbed…
- Pasadena Star News: Alhambra Announces Support for 710 Extension Amid Protestors
Other
- Alhambra Source: Alhambra Residents Express Disappointment with City’s Historic Preservation Efforts
Aftermath
The 4.5-mile 710 Freeway extension was killed three times.
It was killed first in 2017 when LA Metro’s board voted 12-0 to not build it because the cost of about $5 billion to $7 billion was too high and the plan did not meet community needs.
The second time, the relentless opposition from South Pasadena’s Freeway Fighters ended the proposed 6.3-mile all-underground tunnel freeway four years ago, on Nov. 28, 2018, when Caltrans ended the freeway extension.
In 2003, the all-surface route that would have required demolition of 976 houses was defeated when the Federal Highway Administration withdrew its support.
The third time, bills that became law in 2019 said no extension of the freeway could ever be built. However, the bills left the nomenclature in the SHC.
When State Sen. Anthony Portantino, D-Burbank, authored SB7, to end any building of a freeway extension, he put in language that said the small portion, or stub, built to connect to the 210/134 in Pasadena would remain as “Route 710” for about the next 13 months.
This allowed for Caltrans to transfer the property — all 50 acres — to the city of Pasadena. “They wanted time to officially end the freeway,” said Portantino on Monday, Nov. 21, referring to Caltrans. Pasadena obtained the land in June 2022 when the California Transportation Commission voted to return the 50 acres back to the city of Pasadena, which is preparing a master plan for the land.
Portantino said the lingering designation is a nomenclature or semantics issue. It does not change the project status.
Responsible Alhambrans Against the 710 