BHUSD: Metro Must Delay Subway Decision

The attorney representing the Beverly Hills Unified School District in the fight against a subway under its high school is asking Metro to hold off on any final decisions on the Westside Subway Extension until geologists reach a consensus on seismic activity in the area.

Kevin Brogan of Hill Farrer & Burrell LLP sent the letter reproduced at the end of this story to Metro on Tuesday. In it, he calls for a conference of geologists to address "serious flaws in Metro's data and conclusions," according to a statement from the school district.

, several geologists representing the city of Beverly Hills and BHUSD presented findings that showed a lack of active faults in the Century City area. That information contradicts studies of the area commissioned by Metro. Beverly Hills contends there is not enough reliable data to throw out a possible subway stop at Santa Monica Boulevard and Avenue of the Stars. A final report on the Westside Subway Extension released in March , citing the existence of active faults along Santa Monica Boulevard. Beverly Hills has opposed the alignment of the subway tunnel under Beverly Hills High School to reach the stop at Constellation Boulevard, .

At the end of the public hearing that lasted nearly four hours, a lawyer representing the city of Beverly Hills presented that would put the Century City subway stop at Constellation Boulevard and Avenue of the Stars

, a few days before the board met to from Wilshire and Western to Wilshire and La Cienega. The board postponed a decision on the rest of the Westside Subway Extension through Beverly Hills, Century City and Westwood to the Veterans Administration.

Kevin Brogan sent the letter below to the Metro Board of Directors on Monday.

Dear Honorable Chair and Members of the Metro Board:

At the May 17, 2012 hearing, conducted pursuant to Public Utilities Code Section 30639, the City of Beverly Hills presented compelling expert testimony establishing that the West Beverly Hills Lineament was formed by erosion, not faulting, and that the claimed faults plotted (and replotted) by Parsons Brinckerhoff on the Beverly Hills Lineament and the Santa Monica Fault Zone were either nonexistent or occurred well before the Holocene Period, rendering them likely inactive and irrelevant for the purpose of Alquist-Priolo.

Both the quality and quantity of expert commentary on these issues conclusively demonstrates that further scientific investigation is warranted to confirm the viability of both the Constellation Station and Santa Monica Boulevard Station alternatives from a seismic perspective. This investigation may include both borings and trenching based on site availability, etc.  The precise location and testing methodology required can quickly be developed by the scientists given their current familiarity with the site.

The Beverly Hills Unified School District requests the Metro Board defer any further approvals on the Project and immediately convene a meeting of all retained expert geologists who have studied these locations, including geologists from the California Geological Survey to formulate a consensus on the appropriate testing protocol necessary to resolve the outstanding pertinent questions.

Very truly yours,

Kevin H. Brogan
of Hill Farrer & Burrell LLP