LOS ANGELES, CA — Today, Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez introduced a resolution urging Metro to reject the proposed Los Angeles Aerial Rapid Transit project — widely known as the Dodger Stadium gondola — by denying reapproval of the decertified Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and rejecting the Draft Supplemental EIR. The $500 million private, unsolicited venture, backed by billionaire and former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, would send cable cars as low as 40 feet above homes in Chinatown and just 26 feet above Los Angeles State Historic Park, cutting through some of the most environmentally burdened and park-poor neighborhoods in the state.
“This gondola is not a public transit solution,” said Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez. “It is a private development scheme disguised as transportation, designed to raise the value of a billionaire’s parking lots, not to serve working Angelenos. Our communities have said loudly and clearly that they do not want a project that threatens their homes, their park, their green space, and their quality of life. We refuse to sacrifice Chinatown and Solano Canyon so a private developer can profit.”
A UCLA Mobility Lab analysis found the gondola would reduce traffic by less than 1% on game days, while offering no meaningful transit benefit compared to existing bus service. In contrast, Metro’s own documents confirm the project would cut down more than 160 trees, erase thousands of square feet of tree canopy and public parkland, and permanently alter views, soundscapes, and privacy in neighborhoods already ranked among the top 5% statewide for pollution burden. Many of the residents living directly beneath the proposed line are low-income seniors and longtime immigrant families, including those at the 122-unit Chinatown Metro Apartments.
“This project would provide no meaningful transit benefit, but it would permanently change the landscape of El Pueblo, the historic birthplace of Los Angeles, a community of workers, immigrants, and families whose resilience and leadership have shaped this city for generations,” said Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who co-introduced the motion with Councilmember Hernandez. “We cannot prioritize private convenience over public good, especially when our city’s historic and culturally vibrant neighborhoods are at risk.”
The resolution follows years of grassroots organizing, legal challenges, and community testimony urging Metro to reject the project. In May, the State Court of Appeals required a supplemental environmental review after finding serious flaws in the prior analysis — validating long-standing community concerns. Hernandez emphasized that Los Angeles needs real mobility solutions, such as bus priority lanes, neighborhood-led traffic safety improvements, expanded Metro service, and investments that actually help Angelenos get around. The new analysis is now out for public review, and the Metro Board is scheduled to vote on whether to reapprove the project and recertify its environmental review on December 4th.
The action builds on Councilmember Hernandez’s long-standing efforts to protect communities from harmful land-use schemes and defend environmental review. She led the Council’s push for a traffic study before any City approvals could be issued for the gondola, and also authored the City Council resolution opposing Section 3 of SB 71, a state bill that sought to expand CEQA exemptions and shorten legal challenge timelines for large transportation projects like the gondola. After immediate pressure from her office and community advocates, the Legislature removed the exemption from SB 71, ensuring that the gondola could not be fast-tracked or shielded from public scrutiny.