Pasadena City Council meeting on March 24, 2025 (Photo – Screengrab)
Key approvals included Item 7, relating to a capital improvement program; Item 14, protecting qualifying, income-eligible tenants directly financially impacted by the Eaton fire; and Item 13, amending various sections of the City of Pasadena’s zoning code.
By Chase Jones
City Manager Miguel Marquez began the March 25 City Council meeting by announcing the selection of Jim Wong as director of housing. Wong, who has 35 years of experience working with the housing department in Pasadena, expressed his gratitude: “I am deeply appreciative and honored to have been selected for this position. I commit myself and the housing department to another 35 years of great service to the people of Pasadena.”
Public Comment – Invitation to Community Update Meeting
Matt Evans, construction and relations manager, spoke on behalf of Los Angeles Metro and the North Hollywood to Pasadena transit project, inviting the community to a meeting at 6:00 pm Thursday, March 27. This project, approved by the board in April 2022, is in the final stages of development; Evans encouraged feedback and provided an update on the current design.
Item 7
The first item of the evening to receive public comment was Item 7, the amendment for the fiscal year 2025 capital improvement program. This item included approval for a $1,000,000 advance to the Rose Bowl Operating Company (RBOC) to cover half of the total cost for the “Brookside Golf Course Cantilever Fence Project,” as well as approval for the “Washington Park Stormwater Capture Project,” which is projected to cost $12,000,000, funded by the Safe and Clean Water competitive grants. The purpose of the Brookside project is to prevent golf balls from harming pedestrians on the Rose Bowl loop. The purpose of the Washington Park project isto reduce flood risks and property damage from water, and prevent trash from entering the Los Angeles and San Gabriel rivers.
These projects were approved, but two public commenters raised concerns about the decisions.
The first speaker questioned the reasoning behind the Washington Park project, suggesting it was driven more by a looming grant deadline than actual necessity. “Planning because we have a grant that is due was (considered) pretty poor planning when I was in the planning business,” the speaker said. The speaker wanted to see data on how much wastewater the park is actually collecting, the project’s cost-benefit analysis, and potential long-term impacts.
The second speaker expressed concerns about the loan to the RBOC for the Brookside Golf Course project, citing vagueness in the agenda report. Clarity was requested on the financial status of the RBOC, noting that the company had been $200,000,000 in debt the last time the speaker checked. The speaker also pointed out that, with federal funding likely to decrease under the current administration, the project’s funding could be at risk. Councilmember Cole shared concerns about financing, which led him to vote against the item, though his colleagues voted in favor, approving the project.
Items 14 & 13
Items 14 and 13 prompted brief discussions, with only Item 14 receiving public comment. Item 14, concerning the continued uncodified ordinance to protect qualifying income-eligible tenants directly impacted by the Eaton fire, had two speakers. Both also had attended the previous week’s meeting in support of the item. One speaker asked how to help broadcast the ordinance to eligible tenants, while the other expressed gratitude for its implementation and explained how beneficial it would be to those affected. The ordinance was adopted unanimously.
Item 13, an interim uncodified ordinance to amend various sections of the zoning code, was also adopted unanimously. This amendment aims to suspend and modify development standards, procedures, and extend deadlines for entitlements and permits to simplify the rebuild process after the Eaton fire. There were no public comments on this item.
Item 12
The lengthiest discussion of the evening concerned Item 12, which began with a presentation by Matthew Hawkesworth, Pasadena’s Assistant City Manager and Finance Director. The presentation provided an overview of the city’s budget process and current financial status, sparking a discussion on the City Council’s budget priorities.
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