City Of West Hollywood: City's Funding Study Work For The Future Northern Extension Of The Metro Crenshaw/LAX Rail Line Wins Internation ...

Press release from the City of West Hollywood:

November 11, 2021 2:55 PM

The City of West Hollywood is getting the word out that the future Northern Extension of the Metro Crenshaw/LAX Rail Line (Crenshaw North) — the project that will bring Metro light rail service to West Hollywood — was awarded the Infrastructure “Finance Project of the Year” Award by CG/LA Infrastructure, a global leader in infrastructure strategy and project development. The award was announced on Thursday, October 28, 2021 at the 13th annual North American Infrastructure Leadership Forum in Washington D.C.

The award recognizes the City of West Hollywood’s work in exploring creative ways to help finance the Crenshaw North project. CG/LA Infrastructure, additionally, added Crenshaw North to its 2021 Strategic 100 Top North American Infrastructure projects list. CG/LA Infrastructure works with public and private organizations on different infrastructure projects across North America, including advocacy for infrastructure projects and funding and organizing conferences and forums. For information, please visit www.cg-la.com.

“I’m thrilled about CG/LA’s recognition of the Metro Crenshaw North project and of the City of West Hollywood’s work in exploring creative ways of financing it to make it a reality,” said City of West Hollywood Councilmember and Council Metro Liaison Lindsey P. Horvath. “The announcement of this award is timely — it comes just as Congress has passed the $1.2-trillion bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which will include unprecedented funding dedicated to supporting new transit projects such as Crenshaw North. West Hollywood residents — as well as communities and businesses served along the proposed alignment — overwhelmingly support extending Crenshaw North to include our City and we’re committed to a plan that is embraced by our partners to make it happen.”

CG/LA Infrastructure’s award follows a submission from the City of West Hollywood detailing the Crenshaw North project’s Measure M funding and a focus on the City’s work in exploring creative ways to help finance the project, such as value capture and low-interest federal financing. The City’s funding study from 2019, for example, estimated that the City could potentially contribute up to $1.13 billion to finance, accelerate, and implement the project from a combination of existing sales tax revenue, advertising outside future stations, joint development, and a potential Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District (EIFD). EIFDs are a funding tool under California law that earmarks a portion of the natural increase in existing property taxes over time as properties are reassessed to pay for infrastructure investments in a certain area. The City’s analysis also showed that a creative partnership with the City of Los Angeles, the County of Los Angeles, and Metro on such an EIFD could potentially generate an additional $5 billion over a similar timeframe. All funding analysis was intended as an estimate of capacity; specific contributions would be negotiated between the various jurisdictions before final commitments are made.

On Thursday, October 14, 2021, the Westside Cities Council of Governments (WSCCOG) voted at its regular board meeting to allocate an additional $40 million in Measure M Subregional Equity Funds to support environmental and design work needed to get the Crenshaw North project shovel-ready and eligible for state and federal funding. Metro’s environmental analysis on the project is underway as required under California Law and public scoping meetings were held in May 2021. Metro expects to hold additional public meetings next year.

The City of West Hollywood has been working for several years with West Hollywood Advocates for Metro Rail (WHAM), the All on Board Coalition, and the City of Los Angeles to build support for the Metro light rail line Northern Extension to connect the Crenshaw/LAX rail line with Mid-City, West Hollywood, the Metro Red Line station at Hollywood & Highland in Hollywood, and the Hollywood Bowl. The City and its coalition partners have built momentum on a proposal to accelerate the completion of Crenshaw North by up to 20 years. Crenshaw North will have a strong impact on many communities that are currently underserved by access to a rail line and will more conveniently connect the Los Angeles International Airport to Central Los Angeles, West Hollywood, and the San Fernando Valley. It will also mean more mobility options to and from the City of West Hollywood and more convenient access to key healthcare and employment centers such as Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the Pacific Design Center, as well as cultural and entertainment destinations.

For additional information about the future Northern Extension of the Crenshaw/LAX light rail Metro line visit www.weho.org/rail.

For additional information about West Hollywood Advocates for Metro Rail (WHAM), please visit www.whamrail.com. For additional information about the All on Board Coalition, please visit www.allonboardcoalition.com.

A short video, Let’s Finish The Line: Bringing Metro Rail to WeHo, is posted on the City of West Hollywood’s WeHoTV YouTube channel. It maps-out the benefits of the Crenshaw North project and bringing rail to West Hollywood: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVT0n2QHBMA.

For more information, please contact David Fenn, City of West Hollywood Associate Planner, at (323) 848-6336 or at dfenn@weho.org. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496.

The City of West Hollywood remains in a declared local emergency in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. West Hollywood City Hall is open for in-person transactions by appointment. Visitors to City Hall and City facilities are required to adhere to vaccine verification requirements. Click here for details. To make an appointment, visit www.weho.org/appointments. City Hall services remain accessible by phone at (323) 848-6400 and via the City’s website at www.weho.org. City of West Hollywood coronavirus information is available at www.weho.org/coronavirus.

For up-to-date news and events, follow the City of West Hollywood on social media @WeHoCity, sign up for news updates at www.weho.org/email, and visit the City’s calendar of meetings and events at www.weho.org/calendar.

slunn@weho.org

This press release was produced by the City of West Hollywood. The views expressed here are the author’s own.