Alameda Corridor Gets Key Vote

The Alameda Corridor, a Los Angeles rail project billed as crucial to the region’s economy, cleared a major hurdle Thursday--but it took the intervention of some powerful politicians, including House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

Gingrich joined Gov. Pete Wilson, Mayor Richard Riordan and Long Beach Mayor Beverly O’Neill by phone from Washington at a Los Angeles news conference to announce that the project appeared assured of winning a $400-million federal loan.

In Washington, a key House subcommittee, whose influential chairman had balked at funding the project, recommended that the massive transportation undertaking be included in next year’s budget.

Rep. Steve Horn (R-Long Beach) called the action a “major breakthrough on a project of great importance to the nation and to the people of California.”

The project is designed to speed the movement of freight from the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors to a train yard near downtown, where cargo would be dispatched across the nation. The project is expected to generate 10,000 construction jobs and create 700,000 full-time jobs by 2010 from increased trade in the region.

Republicans staged press conferences on both coasts to tout their efforts to save the project when funding appeared uncertain.

Chairman Frank Wolf (R-Va.), of the House transportation appropriations subcommittee, had threatened to block funding for the Alameda Corridor and other Los Angeles transportation projects unless Riordan backed off from an effort to divert Los Angeles International Airport funds to the city treasury. The City Council a few weeks ago ended that threat by removing the airport money from the city budget.

But Wolf, who could not be reached for comment, still had concerns about the method of financing for the Alameda Corridor, a congressional source said.

It was not immediately clear what Gingrich did behind the scenes, and the House speaker did not say during his telephone news conference Thursday. But sources said calls were made between California Republicans--including Wilson, Riordan, Reps. David Dreier (R-San Dimas) and Horn--and Gingrich, leading the House speaker to throw his political clout behind the project.

On Capitol Hill, Horn--along with several other Los Angeles-area Republican congressmen--acknowledged bipartisan support for the massive transportation undertaking, but no Democrats joined the press conference outside the Capitol.

It was President Clinton who in March put in his proposed budget for the new year a $59-million appropriation as leverage for a $400-million loan over three years.

Democrats and Republicans have been working hard to curry political favor from vote-rich California in advance of the presidential election--especially with the use of old-fashioned pork barrel spending. The Clinton administration has approved almost $833 million for earthquake repair of local hospitals and offered $364 million for Los Angeles County health care.

In a related development, the transportation subcommittee recommended that $90 million be provided for the Los Angeles subway project--down from the $158 million proposed by the Clinton administration. But MTA Board Chairman Larry Zarian said, “We are pleased, during this time of tight fiscal policy, to have bipartisan congressional support for continuation of the Metro Red Line construction.”

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Bornemeier reported from Washington and Leeds and staff writer Richard Simon reported from Los Angeles.