Del Mar station

Del Mar station is an at-grade light rail station on the A Line of the Los Angeles Metro Rail system. It is located between Arroyo Parkway and Raymond Avenue at Del Mar Boulevard, after which the station is named, in Pasadena, California. The station is located on the site of the historic Pasadena Santa Fe Depot and the station building, built in 1935, still stands on the property.

"Delmar station" redirects here. For other uses, see Delmar station (disambiguation).

Del Mar
A Line 
Del Mar station platform
General information
Location230 South Raymond Avenue
Pasadena, California
Coordinates 34.1426°N 118.1488°W / 34.1426; -118.1488
Owned byLos Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Connections
Construction
Structure typeAt-grade
Parking610 spaces[1]
Bicycle facilitiesRacks and bike room
AccessibleYes
ArchitectMoule and Polyzoides
History
Opened1887 (1887)
Rebuilt1935 (1935) (second station)
2003 (light rail station)
Previous namesPasadena
Services
Preceding station Metro Rail Following station
Memorial Park
toward APU/Citrus College
 A Line Fillmore
toward Long Beach
Former services (Pasadena station)
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Los Angeles
Terminus
 Desert Wind
1979–1986
 Pomona
toward Chicago
Southwest Chief
1984–1994
Southwest Limited
1974–1984
Super Chief
1971–1974
Las Vegas Limited
1976
 Pomona
toward Las Vegas
Preceding station Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Following station
Raymond Hill
toward Los Angeles
 Main Line
Via Pasadena, Pomona
 Lake Avenue
toward Chicago
Location

The property surrounding the station, situated on the southern edge of Old Town Pasadena, has been used extensively for transit-oriented development projects, including one apartment building that was built over the tracks, creating a tunnel for trains.

The light rail station opened on July 26, 2003, as part of the original Gold Line, then known as the "Pasadena Metro Blue Line" project.

It is one of the stations near the Rose Parade route on Colorado Boulevard and is used by people coming to see the parade.[2]

This station features station art called Kinetic Energy, created by artist Ries Niemi.

History

Railroad station
Original Victorian style station building

Pasadena became a stop on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway’s transcontinental line in 1887. The first station was a Victorian-style building with a tower, weather vane, and scalloped shingles.[3]

In 1935, a new station was built, this time a Spanish Mediterranean style, one-story white stucco building with green trim and a red-tile roof.[4] The station was designed by architect H.C. Gilman and featured ceramic tile designed by Pasadena craftsman Ernest Batchelder.[5]

Pasadena was a stop on the Santa Fe's Super Chief, Chief, El Capitan and other major intercity streamliners, and became a popular with wealthy Easterners who “wintered” in Pasadena, and elite Hollywood actors.[6]

Southwestern style station building

Amtrak took over passenger train service from the Santa Fe on May 1, 1971, and leased the station building from the Santa Fe's real estate subsidiary, the Santa Fe Pacific Realty Corp., for its Southwest Chief and Desert Wind trains.[7] The Desert Wind was re-routed via Fullerton on April 27, 1986.[8]: 148 

Conversion to light rail

In the early 1990s, the Santa Fe agreed to sell the tracks through Pasadena as part of a larger deal with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which would use the right of way to build the Gold Line, then known as the "Pasadena Metro Blue Line" project.[9] Eastbound Southwest Chief service was rerouted to the San Bernardino Subdivision on November 28, 1993, followed by westbound service on January 15, 1994, ending Amtrak service to Pasadena and Pomona.[10][8]: 131 

As construction was underway on the new light rail line, an agreement was reached to use the 4.4-acre (1.8 ha) site for a transit-oriented development project to include 347 apartments, a 1,200 space underground parking garage to be used by Metro passengers and the apartment renters, public courtyards, retail shops, and the historic Santa Fe Depot, which would be fully restored.[11][12] The project was designed by Nadel Architects and Moule & Polyzoides.[12]

To enable the construction of the underground parking garage, in November 2001, a preservation firm sliced the historic train station into three pieces and moved them across Raymond Avenue to be stored in Central Park.[12] It was returned to the station site in September 2003 and reused as a space for a restaurant.[13]

The underground parking garage opened in April 2003,[12] the light rail line opened on July 26, 2003,[6] and the commercial/residential development opened in June 2006.[14]

Later changes

By 2007, Metro's 600 spaces in the underground parking garage were being underutilized. Most usage happened on weekdays and Metro still had enough excess capacity to rent spaces to a car dealership group. Meanwhile, the nearby parking garages for Old Town Pasadena shoppers were often full on weekends. In 2007, the City of Pasadena purchased Metro's share of the garage, opening it up to both commuters and shoppers.[15]

The station became part of the A Line when the Regional Connector tunnel opened on June 16, 2023.[16]

Service

Station layout
Side platform, doors will open on the right
Northbound ← A Line A Line toward APU/Citrus College (Memorial Park)
Southbound → A Line A Line toward Long Beach (Fillmore) →
Side platform, doors will open on the right

Hours and frequency

A Line trains run every day between approximately 4:30 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. Trains operate every 10 minutes during peak hours Monday through Friday, and every twelve minutes during the daytime on weekdays and all day on the weekends. Evening service (after 7 p.m.) is every 20 minutes.[17]

Connections

As of June 16, 2023, the following connections are available:[18]

References
  1. "Metro Parking Lots by Line". Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  2. Riding Metro on New Year's Day Archived December 30, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  3. "Santa Fe railroad station and train, Pasadena, 1935 - UCLA Library Digital Collections". digital.library.ucla.edu. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  4. "Pasadena to Get New Rail Depot, Santa Fe to Build Modern Station at 'Hollywood's Jumping-off Place'". Los Angeles Times. March 23, 1935.
  5. "Amtrak Whistle Blows 1 Last Time at Historic Pasadena Train Station". Los Angeles Daily News. Associated Press. January 16, 1994. p. N6. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  6. Rasmussen, Cecilia (July 13, 2003). "Pasadena's Gold Line Will Travel a History-Laden Route". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 16, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  7. Ward, Mike (August 10, 1989). "Pasadena Wants Amtrak Station: City Would Acquire Depot by Eminent Domain for Use as Commuter Center". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  8. Sanders, Craig (2006). Amtrak in the Heartland. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-34705-3.
  9. "$35 Million Ok'd for Rail Work". Long Beach Press-Telegram. City News Service (Los Angeles). April 2, 1993. p. D8. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  10. "The Last Train Out". Pasadena Star-News. January 15, 1994. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. Lee, Elizabeth (December 21, 2001). "City greenlights Del Mar complex - 347-apartment project granted 8 zoning variances". Pasadena Star-News. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  12. Bender, Mary (April 12, 2003). "Developers hope Gold Line a gold mine - Parking garage finished at Del Mar Station". Pasadena Star-News. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  13. Bender, Mary (August 15, 2003). "Living by the train tracks - Del Mar Station officials touting Gold Line transit village". Pasadena Star-News. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  14. Fielding, Cortney (June 4, 2006). "Del Mar transit village coming alive". Pasadena Star-News. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  15. Ruiz, Kenneth Todd (June 15, 2007). "City seeks parking spaces at train station". Pasadena Star-News. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2021 – via NewsBank.
  16. "Metro Regional Connector opens in Los Angeles, bringing more direct access to downtown". KTLA. June 16, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  17. "Metro A Line schedule". Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. June 16, 2023. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
  18. "A Line Timetable – Connections section" (PDF). Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. June 16, 2023. p. 2. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  19. "ArtCenter College of Design Shuttle Route" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on November 29, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
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