Wilshire/Rodeo station

Wilshire/Rodeo station is an under construction, underground rapid transit (known locally as a subway) station on the D Line of the Los Angeles Metro Rail system. It is currently under construction as part of the D Line Extension project, in Beverly Hills, California. Construction started in 2018 as part of Section 2 of the extension project. It is slated to open in 2026.[1]

Wilshire/Rodeo
D Line 
Wilshire/Rodeo station under construction in August 2023
General information
LocationWilshire Boulevard
Beverly Hills, California
Coordinates 34°4′01″N 118°23′54″W
Owned byLos Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Platforms1 island platform
Tracks2
Construction
AccessibleYes
Other information
StatusUnder construction
History
Opening2026 (2026)
Future services
Preceding station Metro Rail Following station
Century City/Constellation
Terminus
 D Line
D Line Extension Phase 2
 Wilshire/La Cienega
toward Union Station
Location

The station is being built at the site of the former Ace Gallery on the southwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Reeves Drive in Beverly Hills.[2][3][4][5][6]

History
The former Ace Galley, demolished in 2018 to build the Wilshire/Rodeo station

Construction of Wilshire/Rodeo station was officially kicked off on September 23, 2019.[7]

On March 31, 2020, the Beverly Hills City Council approved a proposal from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to fully close the two blocks of Wilshire Boulevard needed to facilitate the station's construction, taking advantage of lower traffic levels resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic in California.[8] This would allow for expedited construction of the station and better mitigation of construction impacts as opposed to the original plan, which would require alternating weekend closures for 13 weeks over a 3.5-month period, with completion scheduled for March 2021.[9] Fully closing Wilshire Boulevard, which went into effect the next day and lasted until June 2020, expedited construction of the station by as much as six months.[10]

Metro officially completed foundation and decking work for Wilshire/Rodeo station seven months ahead of schedule on June 14, 2020, with Tutor Perini, the project's general contractor, putting workers on extra shifts to further expedite construction.[11] Wilshire Boulevard reopened in both directions later that evening,[12] with construction and excavation activities continuing underground until that phase's scheduled completion in the first quarter of 2021.[13]

Station layout

Wilshire/Rodeo station was originally planned with a single entrance, located at the southwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Reeves Drive. However, as part of an agreement Metro negotiated with the City of Beverly Hills which was approved on February 28, 2019,[14] a second entrance is being planned on the northern side of Wilshire Boulevard, with three locations being originally considered.[15]

During a Beverly Hills community meeting held on June 7, 2023, it was announced a location for the second entrance was decided by the Beverly Hills City Council: at the northwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Beverly Drive, adjacent to the Wilshire Beverly Center office complex. The second entrance, which would be constructed between January 2025 and March 2027, will consist of a street-level glass-enclosed entryway, similar to underground stations of other newly built rail lines such as the K Line and the Regional Connector whilst having a single up escalator and a set of stairs leading into a 170-foot-long tunnel which would feed into Wilshire/Rodeo Station's concourse level. According to a staff report, the total cost of the north portal is expected to be $134.2 million. Under terms of the settlement agreement which led to the project's inception, Metro and the City of Beverly Hills are expected to split the cost of the new portal up to the original estimated budget of $78.5 million. However, the two entities are expected to negotiate the split of any amount beyond that original estimate. As a result, the Beverly Hills City Council will be required to decide on whether or not to move forward with the north portal, or reallocate existing funding to other projects such as first/last mile improvements.[16]

The station will be the only station in the Metro Rail system (aside from Union Station) to have public toilets, which will likely be built after the station opens, and may be built above-ground and/or integrated into a new development which would be built above the station.[17]

Attractions

The station is located in the Platinum Triangle neighborhood that includes the Rodeo Drive shopping district and its many hotels, including the Luxe Rodeo Drive Hotel, the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, The Beverly Hilton, and The Peninsula Beverly Hills. It also lies a few blocks south of the Beverly Gardens Park and its Electric Fountain, and Beverly Cañon Gardens. It is also located directly next to Reeves Park.

Various fine dining establishments are located in the neighborhood, including Spago, which is directly across the street.

The Academy Headquarters Building along with its Samuel Goldwyn Theater, the Paley Center for Media and the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts are located nearby. The Rodeo Drive Walk of Style aligns Rodeo Drive.

References
  1. @numble (October 3, 2023). "August 2023 status report for LA Metro's D Line Extension Section 2. 60% as of 9/1/23, +0.8% since 7/28/23. Forecast completion still around September 2026" (Tweet). Retrieved October 3, 2023 – via Twitter.
  2. Boxley, Brittany. "Plans Announced to Extend the Purple Line" Archived 2013-12-24 at the Wayback Machine. Annenberg TV News. 13 Nov 2012.
  3. Brightwell, Eric. "Exploring the Planned Course of the Metro Purple Line Extension" Archived 2013-12-24 at the Wayback Machine. KCET. 28 Aug 2012.
  4. Braymer, Noel T. "LA Busy Building over 35 Miles of New Rail Transit over the Next 10 Years." Archived 2013-12-24 at the Wayback Machine RailPAC. 8 Dec 2012.
  5. "Update on construction progress for the Purple Line Extension". The Source. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. January 11, 2018. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  6. "Purple Line Extension". www.metro.net. Archived from the original on September 29, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  7. Hymon, Steve (September 13, 2019). "Long-awaited Wilshire/Rodeo Station construction to begin in late September". The Source. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  8. Kiszla, Cameron (April 1, 2020). "Beverly Hills authorizes Wilshire closure". Beverly Press. Archived from the original on April 20, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  9. Linton, Joe (March 30, 2020). "Beverly Hills and Metro Look to Speed Subway Construction During COVID-19 Traffic Lull". Streetsblog LA. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  10. Linton, Joe (April 1, 2020). "Beverly Hills Approves Accelerating Subway Construction, Wilshire Boulevard to Close Tomorrow". Streetsblog LA. Archived from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  11. "Stay-at-home order helps Metro end Purple Line road closure in Beverly Hills ahead of schedule". KABC-TV. June 15, 2020. Archived from the original on July 19, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  12. Sotero, Dave (June 15, 2020). "Metro completes decking for planned Beverly Hills subway station seven months ahead of schedule". The Source. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  13. "Stay up to date on subway project with webinar". Beverly Press. June 25, 2020. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
  14. Caulder, Kelcey (February 28, 2019). "COUNCIL APPROVES MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT FOR WILSHIRE/RODEO METRO STATION" (PDF). Beverly Hills Weekly. p. 4. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  15. Sharp, Steven (September 6, 2019). "Beverly Hills Plans for Second Entrance at Wilshire/Rodeo Station". Urbanize Los Angeles. Archived from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  16. Sharp, Steven (June 28, 2023). "North portal at Wilshire/Rodeo Station could cost $134M". Urbanize Los Angeles. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  17. Broverman, Neal (March 15, 2019). "Beverly Hills Is Negotiating to Get a Bathroom at the Rodeo Drive Station". Los Angeles. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
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