Friday, July 19, 2002
 
Canyon measure passes House
 
By Marie Leech
Staff Writer
 

ALTADENA -- An appropriations bill that includes $1 million to remove debris from Rubio Canyon was approved by the House of Representatives Wednesday and will go before Senate for approval in the coming weeks.

Rep. David Dreier secured the money for Rubio out of a $5.6 billion Department of Interior Appropriations bill, which also includes money for national park, wildlife and national fire services.

"This money is badly needed to restore an area of tremendous natural beauty and to assist the residents of Altadena," Dreier said.

The bill, however, still faces hurdles before it receives Senate and White House approval. Scott Gerber, spokesman for California Sen. Dianne Feinstein'soffice, said an appropriations bill must pass both the Senate and House before the president can sign it. If the Senate and House don't agree on the terms of the bill, it then goes to a conference committee and negotiations begin. It is possible the Rubio Canyon money could get lost in that process, he said.

Rubio Canyon, a shady glen north of Altadena, was once known for its 10 spectacular waterfalls. It is now notorious for a debacle that buried five waterfalls and a portion of Mt. Lowe Railway - listed on the National Register of Historic Places - under tons of rock blasted from the canyon wall during a 1998 water pipe replacement project.

The water company's goal was to stabilize a landslide that knocked out a water pipe during the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

The $485,000 project for the Rubio Canon Land and Water Co. was funded in part by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Zaich Construction of Northridge and Sylmar-based Tite Enterprises were the contractors. No agreement has been reached on who is at fault or who will pay the millions of dollars needed to restore the canyon.

But Mark Harmsen, district director for Dreier's office, said this money - if approved by the Senate - is a start.

"This is at least a beginning for the project," he said. "It's been a long time coming."

Marie Leech can be reached at (626) 578-6300, Ext. 4494, or by e-mail at marie.leechsgvn.com.
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