- City:
- Alhambra, CA
- Site Type:
- Sidewalks and Stairs, Infrastructure and Utilities
- New Deal Agencies:
- Works Progress Administration (WPA), Work Relief Programs
- Started:
- 1935
- Completed:
- 1935
- Quality of Information:
- Moderate
- Marked:
- Unknown
- Site Survival:
- Unknown
Description
From April to June 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a pedestrian tunnel at Valley Boulevard and 6th Street in Alhambra, CA. It was intended to improve pedestrian safety for Ramona Elementary School students.
According to a WPA official, “This tunnel, built of reinforced concrete, is 165 feet long, 8 feet high and seven feet wide; the stair approaches are 22 feet each. The walls are plastered and pebble-dashed and an Auto-Electric Light system installed. The approach walls are stairs are guarded by ornamental iron rails. When excavating, a sand formation was encountered at the North approach which caused considerable delay. The banks had to be she[a]thed solid for that reason. Inclement weather also caused delay, but aside from these conflict[s], the work progressed very satisfactorily.”
Source notes
Pasadena Museum of History; description written by a WPA official in a photo album.
Site originally submitted by Andrew Laverdiere on December 3, 2013.
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Mark H
I’ve been seeing this underpass on 6th St. in Alhambra for over 20 years driving back-forth around town, but never have I seen it open; makes perfect sense for the Ramona Elementary school kids just south of Valley to safely traverse the busy and often fast-moving E/W-bound traffic of Valley Blvd, to residential areas north of Valley, including the Alhambra Unified School District offices and their early-education and special needs school just north of Valley. Nowadays the underpass remain closed for reasons unknown; probably attracts criminal/truant activity? I don’t see why they can’t have crossing guards help maintain and secure this Valley Blvd./6th St. underpass, though it would still entail some cost for maintenance and security.
I was wondering if it could be repurposed.