If you’ve been trying to keep track of the many Metro projects happening around Union Station and downtown Los Angeles, Metro’s Central L.A. Community Relations team sends a bimonthly email newsletter to subscribers about Metro-led projects that are being planned, designed or constructed in Central L.A. 

The newsletter even includes some Metro planning facts via “Metro 101” and spotlights Central L.A. community members. Here’s the newsletter’s May edition:

Central L.A. Projects

•L.A. Union Station Forecourt and Esplanade Improvements

Metro hosted the first of several community design workshops in May to receive input on active transportation elements, Father Serra Park design enhancements, and more. To stay up-to-date on next meetings, you can visit the project website here.

•West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor

At the May 24 Board meeting, Metro staff recommended two potential routes to be further studied for the northern section of the light rail project — one serving the Downtown Transit Core (G) and the other the Alameda underground (E ) option to Union Station. Read here for more details.

•L.A. River Bike Path Gap Closure Project

At the May 24 meeting, the Board approved a $45.9-million contract with CH2M Hill, Inc., to perform the environmental studies and design work for the project to close the eight-mile gap between the Elysian Valley and Vernon. Source post and here’s a cool video.

•Vermont Transit Corridor

Metro provided updates to the community about the project in May. The project proposes to build bus rapid transit on Vermont Avenue between Hollywood Boulevard and 120th Street. You can read the last Source post about it here.

•Regional Connector 

The project hosted its halfway there event in Little Tokyo to celebrate a construction milestone and the diverse communities around the project. To see pictures of the construction progress, see the past Source post here.

Countywide Studies

•NextGen Bus Study

The goal of the NextGen Bus Study is to design a new bus network that is more relevant, reflective of, and attractive to the residents of L.A. County. The study’s survey is still live and Metro is hoping to hear your story. Take the survey here.

•Vision 2028 Plan

Metro’s draft Vision 2028 Plan public comment period closed May 24. This is Metro’s big picture plan for transforming and improving the way we move over the next decade. You can refresh your memory about the Plan in this past post.

Community Spotlight: Eugene Wong Moy

The Central L.A. Community Relations team interviews community members and this month’s newsletter focused on Eugene Wong Moy, an urban planner born in L.A. Chinatown and raised in South L.A. Wong Moy shared his views on the evolution of Chinatown and the development of LA transportation.

Again, the newsletter is bimonthly, so it doesn’t replace those project email lists you’re (hopefully) subscribed to. But, if you want to receive a regular summary of what’s going on in the Union Station/downtown LA area at Metro, subscribe to the newsletter here.