Members of the Bus Riders Union showed up to the Metro board meeting in
Halloween costumes. (Photo Courtesy: Bus Riders Union)

In pursuit of answers about the delayed opening of Gold Line to East L.A.

Remember when we all expected a summer opening of the Gold Line Eastside Extension light-rail project linking Union Station to East L.A.?

It never happened, and to find out why I began a reporting journey for Neon Tommy six weeks ago that landed me in front of the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Thursday morning.

It seems the county counsel - the taxpayer-funded lawyers - and the members of the transit board--don't want anyone to see inspection records documenting the problems that forced the delay or to know the full cost. The six-mile leg is expected to open Nov. 15 after large portions of concrete had to be torn up and replaced because iron oxide in paint was causing electrical shorts along the line.

I still hold out hope that the board members who say they are champions of the public's right-to-know like Zev Yaroslavsky, Richard Katz and Gloria Molina, will order the County Counsel's Office to share the records with the public.

In my reporting, Marc Littman, Metro's deputy executive officer for media relations, told me that the company agreed to foot the bill for the repairs. He said he didn't know the bill amounts, or how exactly the problem became known. He and I talked at least a dozen times in September for my story. I wanted to know more.

I drafted a request under the California Public Records Act and sent it off to Metro last month. I requested all correspondence, documents and inspection records between Metro and its contractor and the state Public Utilities Commission.

What did I get back? I got what appeared to be a form letter, signed by Joe Parise of the Records Management Center, denying me any information on the basis that "the matter may be pending future litigation."

How could it be pending litigation? The company agreed to pay the bill, Littman had told me.

My next step: to bring the matter out into the open and let the Metro board scrutinize my request at a public meeting and to demand answers for all to hear from the tight-lipped county counsel. So I sent a letter to Yaroslavsky, the longtime county supervisor and Metro Board member.

In that letter, I asked him to place on the agenda of the board meeting my request for records and its denial. I also explained that it is in the public interest to understand how Metro and its contractor handle problems. This is, after all, a public project. An example of just how important this is to the public is the passage of Measure R, the half-cent sales tax increase voters approved by more than a two-thirds majority during the height of the recession last November.

When a few days went by, and I heard nothing from Yaroslavsky or his staff, I finally called his office this week. A woman promised I would receive a call by the end of the day. Again, nothing.

So, I attended the Metro board meeting to address Yaroslavsky and his colleagues in open session. Let me say that it is not easy for me to get up and speak in front of what I think will be more than 100 people. People from unions, people from neighborhoods, people for and against items on the agenda. Even people in Halloween costumes.

Metro Board Chair Ara Najarian called my name.

I went to the microphone and urged the Metro board to ask the county counsel to explain to them and to the public why Metro chose to deny my request. As I spoke, I noticed that the board did not pay much attention. One member carried on a conversation with another member. They laughed. The others looked at their cell phones. I did not get a response. I asked them to seek comment from the county counsel, and I did not get a response?

I finished my comment in the one minute Metro allows each member of the public to speak, and I walk back to my chair. The reaction after my comment was not what I expected.

Steve Hymon, former Los Angeles Times transit reporter and current blogger for The Source, Metro's new blog covering transit issues, approached me. He asked if I could send my public records request, as well as Metro's denial letter, over to him. He wanted to add them to his blog.

"I want to make Metro more transparent," Hymon says.

Damien Goodmon, neighborhood council member and foe of the Expo Line project, stopped me on my way back to my seat. He told me Metro always uses future litigation as an excuse.

And then there was Karla Aguilar, who lives on Third Street and wonders about the Gold Line Eastside Extension. She said she does not understand why there was construction outside of her home when the line was set to open in June.

 "Anyway, thank you for looking for the answer," Aguilar added. We exchanged contact information and Kymberleigh Richards, governance council member in San Fernando, approached me.

"Welcome to the world post 9-11," Richards said. She explained that Metro probably denies public records requests pertaining to electrical leakage issues because terrorists could potentially use those issues in their favor.

 "Couldn't they just tell me that?" I said.

And, of course, I spoke with John Walsh, blogger and long-time transportation critic. He told me to contact Karen Ocamb, news editor for Frontiers in LA magazine, who won a Beacon Award from the First Amendment Coalition in 2002. Walsh said I had a great case and should ask Ocamb about my rights.

I sat through the next five hours of the meeting and there was no talk about the issue I asked Yaroslavsky to place on the agenda. I left the meeting and called his office once again. The woman who answered the phone forwarded me to Vivian Rescalvo, his deputy handling Metro matters. Of course I got her voicemail, so I left her a message. I also left a message for Joel Bellman, Yaroslavsky's press deputy. I get a call back 15 minutes later.

"There are rules against just claiming future litigation," Bellman said. "You cannot just say that if there is no basis for it."

That sounds about right.

He told me to contact Littman, and said I will either get an explanation, or Littman will help me get Metro to turn over those documents.

Ever the optimist, I'm counting on them to be listening now.

Stay tuned.