RWG played an integral role in the City of Rancho Cucamonga’s advancement of a first-of-its-kind privately-operated high-speed rail station to be completed at an existing Metrolink station before the 2028 Olympics. The RWG team successfully resolved numerous legal issues including:
- Surplus Land Disposition. Rancho Cucamonga and the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority jointly own the Metrolink station and its surrounding parking lot. Brightline West, a private entity, is developing the high-speed rail station and is purchasing a portion of the Metrolink station parking lot for the project. RWG successfully obtained a California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) determination that the Surplus Land Act is inapplicable to this land sale. HCD concluded that, even though Brightline West is a private company and the high-speed rail station will not have a residential component, the land sale is for agency use because Rancho Cucamonga and the transportation authority are creating a regional transportation hub.
- Real Estate Transactions. RWG negotiated and drafted a three-party disposition and development agreement, easements, and CC&Rs to facilitate the high-speed rail station. These legal documents address a broad range of topics including: construction timing and oversight; indemnification; station operation assurances; and traffic improvements.
- Environmental Review. RWG advised city staff on comments to the Federal Railroad Administration regarding the NEPA environmental review for the high-speed rail station. Additionally, the firm opined on federal preemption principles that exempt rail projects from CEQA environmental review.
- Protection of Public Amenities: The high-speed rail station will displace a limited number of excess parking spaces at the Metrolink Station. To minimize the displacement, RWG negotiated a creative solution that preserves existing surface parking spaces underneath the high-speed rail station. The firm also advised on prevailing wage and contracting issues to ensure that the public parking spaces are successfully integrated into the high-speed rail station project.
