Caltrans pressured to sell homes bought for 710 Freeway extension

[cpzilliacus]

L.A. Times: Caltrans pressured to sell homes bought for 710 Freeway extension

Pressure is mounting on the California Department of Transportation to sell 460 homes it acquired decades ago in Pasadena, South Pasadena and El Sereno to make way for an extension of the 710 Freeway that has been stalled ever since.

But officials say it could be years more before any decision is made on the properties.

Caltrans bought the homes in 1950s, '60s and '70s to accommodate plans to extend the northern end of the Long Beach Freeway from Alhambra, where it ends now, to the Foothill Freeway in Pasadena. But now it appears regional transportation officials favor digging a 4.5-mile tunnel to connect the 710 and the 210.

[Bickendan]

Build the tunnel, then sell the homes. Otherwise if the tunnel option doesn't pan out, the overland option still can work (haha, that's funny!).

[TheStranger]

Build the tunnel, then sell the homes. Otherwise if the tunnel option doesn't pan out, the overland option still can work (haha, that's funny!).

I don't think the ground-level freeway will ever be politically possible in South Pasadena (thus the tunnel proposal) - BUT I also feel CalTrans has way more control over what happens as long as they own that aboveground right of way, regardless of how much pressure South Pasadena puts on them.

[nexus73]

Once you have a right of way you keep it until it is either used, replaced by another or no longer needed.  There's a number of gaps and improvements needed in SoCal's freeway network and let's face it, traffic isn't going to get any lighter as the years pass short of a major extinction event...LOL!

Rick

[kkt]

Yes... there's few things harder to get than a right of way through an urban area.  Keep it until the tunnel is actually built.  Even if a tunnel is built, the surface right of way could be useful staging area during construction.  Waiting to sell it would probably make them money too, given the current housing market.

[Scott5114]

Have the houses not been demolished yet? Why not rent them out until they need to be bulldozed?

[national highway 1]

Or maybe follow what they did with the 40th Street Freeway in San Diego: build sections as a cut and cover tunnel to somehow keep the connectivity of the neighborhoods.

[TheStranger]

Or maybe follow what they did with the 40th Street Freeway in San Diego: build sections as a cut and cover tunnel to somehow keep the connectivity of the neighborhoods.

Well, this route IS already planned as an underground tunnel...

I'm not sure but it sounds like CalTrans owns the properties and is renting them out, but I could be wrong.  I don't think it's quite like San Diego with Route 15 (where the properties were indeed vacant).