After losing his bid for re-election this month, Whittier City Council member Fernando Dutra has incurred a double loss.
Not only will he be off the City Council dais on April 28, but he also will lose his seat on the 13-member LA Metro Board of Directors in about three months.
The only silver lining is that Dutra, who is the current chair of the LA Metro board, will most likely stay on the transit board until the end of his term as chair, after the Gateway Cities Council of Governments and the Los Angeles County City Selection Committee vote in his replacement.
Because this process takes some time, Dutra estimated he will say goodbye to his fellow Metro board members at the July 23 Metro board meeting, most likely his last.
The board has 13 voting members: all five L.A. County supervisors, the mayor of Los Angeles who also picks three other members from LA city; and four elected representatives from four smaller cities, each from a different quadrant. The latter four are chosen from: North County/San Fernando Valley, San Gabriel Valley, Gateway Cities, and South Bay/Westside.
The first go-round for Dutra’s seat is a free-for-all open to all mayors and city council members of 27 cities of the Gateway Cities COG. Dutra was appointed by the COG and also served as chair of the COG. Any locally elected official can be nominated for the Metro seat from a quadrant with an opening. Next, that person must get approval from 87 cities in the county (not including Los Angeles which appoints its own members) during a special meeting of the city selection committee not yet set. The appointee serves a four-year term.
Hector De La Torre, executive director of the Gateway Cities COG, said his members have been asking about the selection process since Dutra lost his re-election bid on April 14 and will no longer qualify as a director on the LA Metro board. Yet, De La Torres was glad that Dutra will serve out his year-long chairmanship.
“There is no sudden change.” he said on Monday. “It give them (Metro) time for the transition. And it gives continuity to the board.”
Although De La Torre said Dutra “does have to transition off,” he’ll remain until the next Gateway Cities council member or mayor is chosen. “The seat cannot remain vacant. Because of that, he continues to serve until the election happens.”
While Dutra said he does not have a candidate in mind, he does have some thoughts about the type of person who should replace him on LA Metro. Most of all, he says anyone considering running must be committed. He said it takes at least five days a week of time every month to get familiar with agenda items, staff reports, attend committee and general meetings.
Dutra serves on Metro’s Executive Management Committee, Construction Committee and started the new Ad Hoc Board Composition Committee. Ironically, Dutra’s new committee is producing a report on the makeup of the Metro board in the future. His departure may come alongside the retirement of Ara Najarian, mayor of Glendale, representing the North County/San Fernando Valley. When the Board of Supervisors expands to nine, that could boost the Metro board to 17. And if Mayor Bass loses her re-election, that may mean there could be six openings by summer or fall.
All these potential changes means any new person must hit the ground running and stay for the long haul, Dutra said.
“Transportation is a relay, not a race. My job is to hand the baton to somebody,” he said on Monday, April 20, reflecting on the long-term mindset needed by the next Metro board member from a smaller city.
“This person should have a vision for transportation. They should understand the impacts Metro has on each of the Gateway cities and communities. And an understanding of Metro itself, he said.
“Metro is the second-largest transportation agency in the United States. It has 13,000 employees, nearly a $10 billion budget,” he said. It serves 1,433 square miles with a fleet of 2,086 buses and six operating rail lines. But besides trains and buses, Dutra added: “It also does housing and we will have our own police department,” he said.
Dutra, 66, says after 14 years on the Whittier City Council, and almost six year on Metro, he’ll have more free time. He wants to concentrate more on his business, Allwest Development, and building housing projects. He also will spend more time with his wife, Mary. The couple are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary.
Building and engineering are strengths used on the Metro board, he said. He will be there on May 8 when the first segment of the extension of the D (Purple) Line subway that reaches Beverly Hills opens to the public. New trains, new housing projects on Metro vacant land, and how government works are things he loves.
“I’m going to miss all that alot,” he said.
He wants to continue to advocate for cities along the future Southeast Gateway Line, connecting Artesia to downtown Los Angeles, serving 11 Southeast LA County communities. He also wants to help Whittier get that long-planned Eastside Transit Corridor, Phase Two, which will extend the E Line train about nine miles east from Atlantic Boulevard in East Los Angeles to Lambert Station in Whittier.
“I am grateful for all the time and the stuff we have done. I walk away from this very grateful and happy. And I’m willing to help anybody that needs my assistance. I believe in transportation and good city policy,” Dutra said.