Burbank Resident Blasts SB-79 and Metro BRT in Poem

A Burbank resident is using verse to make a pointed argument about SB-79 and the proposed Metro Bus Rapid Transit line on Olive Avenue, and he’s directing most of his frustration at City Hall.

Richard B. Cathcart, a Burbank resident, submitted a letter to a local publication this month that combined sharp political criticism with a two-stanza poem aimed at what he describes as a passive and ineffective City Council. The letter takes aim at both Sacramento’s SB-79 legislation and Los Angeles Metro’s BRT plans for Olive Avenue, framing the two as twin threats to the city’s character and financial stability.

SB-79, which has drawn opposition from multiple Southern California cities, would allow higher-density residential development near transit corridors, including bus rapid transit stops. For Burbank, the Olive Avenue BRT route would trigger those provisions, potentially reshaping development patterns along one of the city’s most established commercial and residential corridors.

Cathcart does not mince words about where he thinks the failure lies. He argues the City Council has not pushed back forcefully or publicly enough against what he calls Sacramento’s “supramajority” and Metro’s planning mandates. His poem imagines a degraded Olive Avenue future: littered BRT stations, closed small businesses, and what he describes as the toxic fallout from electric bus battery fires.

The imagery is deliberately provocative. Cathcart references “graffitted BRT Olive Avenue station public potties,” small businesses selling off their remaining stock before closing, and a city government he characterizes as “indecisive and faint-hearted.” His second stanza ends with a sardonic question about whether the council might rename Olive Avenue after themselves.

Whether or not readers share his tone, Cathcart is touching on concerns that have surfaced repeatedly in community discussions about the BRT project. Critics of the Olive Avenue route have raised questions about traffic impacts, parking loss, and what denser transit-adjacent development would mean for existing neighborhoods. Supporters argue the BRT would reduce car dependence and connect Burbank more effectively to the broader regional transit network.

The City Council has taken positions on various aspects of the project over the past year, but Cathcart argues those positions have lacked force. He wants council members to be louder, more combative, and more visibly aligned with residents who oppose the current direction of both the BRT plan and SB-79’s density requirements.

His letter reflects a frustration that extends well beyond Burbank. Cities across Los Angeles County have pushed back on state housing legislation they argue strips local control over land use. Burbank, which has historically maintained tight oversight of its residential neighborhoods and commercial corridors, sits in a particularly complicated position. The city depends on its proximity to Warner Bros., Disney, and other studio operations for economic stability, and any significant reshaping of Olive Avenue carries both symbolic and practical weight.

The BRT line, if built along Olive Avenue as currently proposed, would run through the heart of the city, connecting to the broader Metro network and passing through neighborhoods that have seen relatively stable development patterns for decades. Metro argues the line would improve mobility for Burbank residents who don’t own cars or prefer not to drive. Opponents argue the current design prioritizes transit efficiency over neighborhood livability.

Cathcart’s poem is unlikely to shift votes at City Hall. But letters like his reflect a constituency that feels unheard and is watching closely. With SB-79 still working through Sacramento and the Metro BRT project in ongoing planning phases, Burbank residents will have more opportunities to weigh in at public hearings before any final decisions lock in.

For anyone who wants to track those hearings or submit public comment, the City of Burbank’s planning department posts upcoming meeting schedules on its website. The next round of community input sessions on the Olive Avenue corridor is expected later this spring.