Mayor Tim Sandoval of Pomona was elected today to represent the San Gabriel Valley for the Metro board of directors. Running unopposed and receiving unanimous support with 131 weighted votes for approval, Sandoval will serve out a term that ends on January 1, 2023.
Sandoval was elected Pomona’s Mayor in 2016 and won reelection in the most recent November 4, 2020 election. Sandoval, who's been a resident of Pomona for more than 35 years, currently serves as the chair of both the Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority and the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments Capital Projects and Construction Committee, which oversees major projects including the Foothill Gold Line Extension and the San Gabriel Valley Transit Feasibility Study.
Sandoval will be replacing John Fasana, retiring city council member of Duarte. Fasana served as a Metro Board Member for 27 consecutive years, dating back to the first Metro Board in 1993.
The 13-member Metro board includes five county supervisors, the Mayor of Los Angeles and three mayoral appointments, and four regional representatives. The four regional reps are officially put in place by an obscure body titled the Los Angeles County City Selection Committee, which administers the appointment of city representatives to various boards, including Metro, Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD), and others.
To select a new Metro board member, representatives of a region meet and vote. Voting is weighted by population with cities receiving one vote for every 10,000 residents, though with a minimum of one vote.
Members of the SGV Sector include Alhambra, Arcadia, Azusa, Baldwin Park, Bradbury, Claremont, Covina, Diamond Bar, Duarte, El Monte, Glendora, Industry, Irwindale, La Puente, La Verne, Monrovia, Montebello, Monterey Park, Pasadena, Pomona, Rosemead, San Dimas, San Gabriel, San Marino, Sierra Madre, South El Monte, South Pasadena, Temple City, Walnut, and West Covina.
Multiple elected officials voiced their support for Sandoval, including L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis, La Verne Mayor Tim Hepburn, and Diamond Bar Mayor Nancy Lyons. South Pasadena Mayor Diana Mahmud said she's had a positive experience working with him on the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments and Capital Projects and Construction Committee, formerly the Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority. "He's very confident and does his homework," Lyons said.
In a written public comment, Supervisor Hilda Solis expressed her support saying that Sandoval possessed the experience and expertise for the position. "Regardless of what capacity Mayor Sandoval worked in throughout his career, his dedication to improving quality of life for residents in Pomona and the greater San Gabriel Valley has been constant. Mayor Sandoval would bring this same commitment to public service to Metro if appointed to its Board of Directors."
Sandoval said he was thankful for his support and talked about how his family roots riding the bus have brought him full circle. "I remember as a kid riding on the RTD bus, it was a lifeline for my mom who used public transportation with the family to go to the park, or go to work for 30 plus years," Sandoval said. "Here we are 40 years later, an opportunity to serve on the Metro board."
See also Streetsblog L.A. coverage of the other new Metro rep elected today: Whittier City Councilmember Fernando Dutra.
SBLA San Gabriel Valley coverage, including this article and SGV Connect, is supported by Foothill Transit, offering car-free travel throughout the San Gabriel Valley with connections to the new Gold Line Stations across the Foothills and Commuter Express lines traveling into the heart of downtown L.A. To plan your trip, visit Foothill Transit. “Foothill Transit. Going Good Places.”
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