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Rosemead council authorizes committee to coordinate with neighboring cities on Garvey Avenue bus proposal, lists red lines
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Summary
After two hours of public comment, the council voted 5–0 to have its legislative/advocacy committee coordinate with neighboring cities on the San Gabriel Valley COG/Metro Garvey Avenue transit study, directing staff to protect parking, avoid lane reductions and preserve bike-lane plans while the subcommittee analyzes traffic, ridership and outreach.
The Rosemead City Council voted to authorize its legislative (advocacy) committee to manage discussions with adjacent cities and regional agencies about the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments’ Garvey Avenue transit feasibility work, following extensive public comment from residents and business owners.
Council Member Steven Lee framed the request as an attempt to ensure Rosemead is "at the table" for design discussions that would affect traffic, parking and the Garvey Specific Plan. Speakers at the podium included merchants and long-time businesses along Garvey Avenue who said they had received little outreach, expressed concern about losing on-street parking and warned that lane reductions could create traffic jams and harm small businesses. Other residents and representatives urged improved transit access for seniors, students and transit-dependent families and asked for integrated bike lanes and mitigations for parking loss.
Council and staff compiled a short list of “red lines” to guide the committee’s work: do not remove parking spaces without mitigation, avoid eliminating general-purpose traffic lanes in a way that would worsen congestion, preserve the Garvey specific plan’s bicycle infrastructure where feasible, and request clear ridership and traffic‑impact analyses. Council Member Lee’s motion authorized the legislative committee to work with neighboring cities and return periodic reports to the full council; Mayor Pro Tem Potemapoli Lo and other council members emphasized that forming a committee is exploratory — not an endorsement of any specific alignment or design.
The motion passed unanimously. Staff said the committee would agendize meetings, solicit community input, and bring periodic reports back to the council. Council members asked the committee and staff to insist on more comprehensive outreach from the COG and Metro, to review traffic modeling for lane‑reduction scenarios, and to assess how any corridor changes would affect the Garvey Specific Plan and local businesses.