By Néstor CASTIGLIONE

A surprise new chapter has been opened in the contentious, decades- long dispute over the 710 Freeway extension.

A lawsuit filed by the city of Rosemead last Thursday is seeking to overturn the decision by the governing board of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority (Metro) to drop funding for the 710 tunnel project. The decision, which was voted upon last May and garnered the unanimous support from the Metro board, cited a lack of funding, effectively terminating the project.

The proposed 6.3-mile tunnel connecting Alhambra to Pasadena was estimated to have cost upwards of $5 billion.

In an interview with the Crescenta Valley Weekly in May, Glendale Councilmember Ara J. Najarian, who sits on the Metro board, said that cost overruns for the project were virtually assured. Factoring in that, along with a statewide budget deficit and reluctance from the Trump administration to fund major infrastructure projects, he explained that those problems precluded any realistic chance to realize the tunnel.

Rosemead’s lawsuit was filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court.

According to the lawsuit, Rosemead accused Metro of being in “clear breach” of the environmental review process for the project, which was initiated by Caltrans and Metro in 2015 and is still underway. Delivery of the final report from the review was not expected until next year.

The petition filed by Rosemead also asks that the court issue a permanent injunction against the disbursement of Measure R funds on any other projects that “fail to fulfill the voters’ intent.”

According to a press statement issued by the city of Rosemead, Metro ignored the findings of its staff, which had suggested that the tunnel option to connect the 710 and 210 freeways brought “the greatest overall benefit to the region.”

“Rosemead, along with other cities along the 710 North corridor, are determined to pursue all legal options to address the environmental injustices currently forced upon the residents of the corridor,” read the city’s press statement.

Rosemead’s mayor pro tem Stephen Ly added that his city will protect its residents and businesses “against any threats to their health and diminished quality of life caused by inordinate air and noise pollution and excessive traffic on city streets” caused by Metro’s decision.

When asked for comment, Metro’s media relations office replied with the following statement:

“[Metro’s] action supporting adoption of the Transportation System Management/Transportation Demand Management alternative will allow for timely implementation of cost-effective transportation improvements in communities along the SR-710 corridor, consistent with the purpose and need of the project, without foreclosing other alternatives for future consideration by the Metro board when additional funding can be secured. Metro believes that this approach is in the best interest of all affected corridor cities because it will use available resources to improve connections between the SR-710 and I-210 freeways as intended by the Measure R Ordinance.”

South Pasadena Councilmember Marina Khubesrian, who is among the 710 tunnel’s critics, said Tuesday that she and her city were “grateful” for Metro’s decision on the tunnel, arguing that the litigation over the project would have endured many more years.

She, along with Pasadena Mayor Terry Tornek and representatives of pro-710 tunnel cities, had met with Los Angeles County Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Hilda Solis earlier this month to discuss how to distribute Measure R funds.

“I’m also pleased that the cities most impacted by the current 710 configuration are now coming together to work toward solutions that will benefit all the affected communities,” she added. “This is the best path forward, and I hope Rosemead will join us soon as well.”

Local resident Susan Bolan of the No 710 Action Committee said that Metro’s decision was an acknowledgement that Measure R funds could be spent “on more effective transportation projects.”

“My hope is that cities like Rosemead will shift their focus and work with the corridor cities to solve traffic issues. $700 million [in Measure R funds] will go a long way to help the region and to provide jobs,” she stated in an email.

  Nestor CASTIGLIONE