Arcadia Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce Habib F. Balian, Chief Executive Officer of the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority, as the guest speaker at Dec. 4 Government Affairs Forum at 8 a.m., sponsored by Singpoli. Balian is going to provide updates station openings along the 11.5-mile Pasadena to Azusa project and projections for extending the line to Montclair and eventually the Ontario Airport.
Balian oversees planning, funding and construction of the light rail line from Los Angeles to Montclair. Previous to his appointment as CEO, Habib served as the Chief Administrative Officer. Balian will discuss notable dates over the next 10 months as the project reaches substantial completion and is turned over to Metro for testing and pre-revenue service. Additionally, Balian will also discuss the status of the next segment of the line – Azusa to Montclair, which is currently undergoing advanced engineering as it is prepared for a design-build procurement. Funding is being sought to construct that 12.5-mile segment.
During his 12-year tenure with the Authority, Habib has overseen construction of the nearly 14-mile Los Angeles to Pasadena segment of the line (a design-build program that came in on time and under budget), and has managed construction of the Pasadena to Azusa segment. He has also overseen the necessary planning studies to ready the segments from Azusa to Montclair and Montclair to LA/Ontario International Airport for future construction.
The public is invited on the first Thursday of each month to hear informative presentations at the monthly Government Affairs Forums sponsored by Singpoli and led by Chairman Jack Orswell and co-chair Pete Ulrich, former Arcadia City Councilman. RSVPs to the Chamber of Commerce office are appreciated – (626) 447-2159 or info@ArcadiaCaChamber.org. Hear legislative updates at the Chamber conference room at 388 W. Huntington Drive, Arcadia, which is sponsored by Foothill Credit Union. A discussion of pending legislation and other updates will be provided by representatives from City, County, and State government offices, the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension and the Monrovia-Arcadia-Duarte Town Council.
