Today, #DamienTalks with Olga Arroyo and Jean Marie Hance with Community and Construction Relations for the Regional Connector Project in Downtown Los Angeles. With the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) going in the ground next week, it seemed the perfect time to connect with the Regional Connector.

The conversation is wide ranging and goes on for over twenty minutes, a rarity for this podcast. We cover a lot of ground, including:

• Where are we in the construction timeframe?
• The naming project for the Tunnel Boring Machine (to be announced next week)
• Outreach projects including Go Little Tokyo
• The station naming contest

Despite my best efforts, they would not tell me the names of the stations or the TBM. Even more disappointingly, no matter how many twitter accounts I create and spam them, I will not be able to get a station named after me.

But there is other exciting news. The TBM will be lowered into the ground next week at a special ceremony at the station at First Street and Central Avenue in Little Tokyo. Because it is an active construction zone, attendance is limited. You can get more details for the event in the podcast and can RSVP (if there’s space) by emailing regionalconnector[at]metro.net.