Deadline Nearing for Questions on Closure (of 710): Series 3 Scoping Meetings Added 2

Officials have added two meetings to Metro’s Series 3 “710 Conversations” on Scoping, the gathering of public comments and questions about a project’s environmental effects, mitigation measures, and feasible alternatives. They have also extended the deadline for public input to April 14.

All relevant input must be legally addressed during the lengthy, and likely expensive, environmental impact report process that will follow. Here’s your chance to help government agencies spend time and money answering questions about why they shouldn’t spend even more time and exponentially more taxpayer money constructing a six-mile tunnel.

The Notice of Preparation on Caltrans’ website provides some information (but the original deadline of April 1). Local communities, including Glendale, are officially opposed to a freeway or tunnel project, and advocate alternatives including multi-mode, light-rail, and alternative transit investments.

Comments and questions relevant to the project should focus on:
1. Resources in the project area (neither project or area is defined, so do your best)
2. Impacts arising from the project
3. Mitigation measures for impacts
4. Alternatives to the project

Alternatives for submitting comments (deadline April 14) include:

— Attending a final Series 3 meeting. Check the link for the schedule; there is one tonight, and one tomorrow, and these two were added to the original schedule:
Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 6-8pm
La Cañada High School – Cafeteria
4463 Oak Grove Dr
La Cañada, CA 91011

Wednesday, April 6 2011, 6-8pm
Ramona Hall Community Center
4580 North Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90065

— Sending letters (recommend hard copy, certified mail) to:

Ron Kosinski, Deputy District Director
Division of Environmental Planning
Caltrans – District 7
100 South Main Street, MS 16A
Los Angeles, California 90012
Email: Ron_Kosinski@dot.ca.gov