Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Paris Hilton Helps Local Women-Owned Businesses Rebuild After Eaton Fire

By André Coleman, Managing Editor

Several Pasadena-based business owners received $25,000 grants to help rebuild their businesses lost in the Eaton Fire. Recipients include owners of childcare centers, bakeries, bookshops, dance studios, and salons, including the Little Red Hen, Octavia’s Bookshelf, and Pasadena Rosebud Academy.

“One of our parents sent us a video of [the school] on fire,” Shawn Brown, founder and executive director of the Rosebud Academy, told Pasadena Now in an interview after the fire. “We knew at that point that, for the most part, our school had burned.”

The Pasadena Women’s Business Center also received a $25,000 grant. The money will be used to offer free advising services to local entrepreneurs.

“[Fifty] incredible women-owned businesses have been awarded grants to help them rebuild and thrive,” the center posted on its website. “They represent the heart of their communities—from beloved neighborhood restaurants and childcare centers to fitness studios, florists, and family-run shops.”

The grants are part of GoFundMe.org’s Wildfire Relief Fund,

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Supervisors to Vote on Resolution Extending Eaton Fire Emergency

By André Coleman, Managing Editor

The County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote on a resolution that would continue the local emergency declaration caused by the Eaton Fire and windstorm event that decimated Altadena in January.

“At this time, conditions of disaster or of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property caused by the January 2025 Windstorm and Critical Fire Events continue to exist; this warrants the local emergency being continued by the Board,” the resolution reads.

The proclaimed local emergency for the January 2025 Windstorm and Critical Fire Events has been in effect since January 7, 2025, and continued by the Board thereafter.

The declaration enables the County to access state and federal assistance and expedite resource procurements.

“The local emergency provides the County with the ability to continue its efforts to assess costs and damages and perform significant repairs to damaged property within the County,” according to the resolution. “By continuing the local emergency,

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Nearby Residents Unhappy With Decision at Altadena Golf Course

By André Coleman, Managing Editor

Local residents in Altadena on Monday told Pasadena Now that the Army Corps of Engineers, local residents living near the Altadena Golf Course are worried that an operation to place hazardous materials at the Altadena Golf Course could recontaminate their homes and put their families’ health and safety at risk.

On Monday, the Army Corps of Engineers began transporting burn debris to the former Altadena Town & Country Club Golf Course which was destroyed in the Eaton Fire in January.

The property is staging for the temporary storage of hazardous materials collected from the Eaton fire burn footprint. Staging areas have also been established in Duarte and Farnsworth Park in Altadena.

“All of the reasons given for why this is a good idea are anecdotal, and not data driven, and when the data is asked for to support this notion,” said George Gund.

Residents have expressed concerns over noise and air quality issues as crews work to transfer the debris,

Monday, March 31, 2025

Average LA County Gas Price Rises for Ninth Time in 10 Days

CITY NEWS SERVICE

The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County rose Monday for the ninth time in 10 days, increasing 2.2 cents to $4.819, a day after rising 3.3 cents.

The average price has risen 16 cents over the past 10 days, including 5.3 cents Saturday, its largest increase since April 5, according to figures from the AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. It rose three consecutive days, increasing 1 cent, dropped four-tenths of a cent Tuesday and resumed increasing Wednesday.

The average price is 16 cents more than it was one week ago and 6.2 cents higher than one month ago but 32.5 cents less than one year ago. It has dropped $1.675 since rising to a record $6.494 on Oct. 5, 2022.

The national average price of a gallon of gas rose nine-tenths of a cent to $3.168, a day after it was unchanged. It has increased seven of the past eight days.

Monday, March 31, 2025

Pasadena School Board Faces Mounting Pressure Over Teacher Cuts

Hundreds rallied last week against layoffs which will affect educators displaced by Eaton Fire

Hundreds of teachers and community members rallied outside Pasadena Unified School District headquarters to protest planned layoffs of 120 teachers, a move the demonstrators say will further devastate a community still struggling to recover from the Eaton Fire.

The March 27 protest, organized by United Teachers Pasadena (UTP), coincided with a regularly scheduled Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education meeting and drew television and radio media outlets as protesters lined both sides of Del Mar Avenue holding signs, blowing whistles and chanting slogans.

“We’re here at the Board meeting to voice our opposition to the cuts,” said UTP President Jonathan Gardner. “We believe it’s already harming our schools. We can see the drop in morale and all the different impacts this is already having.”

The layoffs are part of Pasadena Unified School District’s response to a $37 million budget deficit, exacerbated by declining enrollment and the expiration of COVID relief funds,

Monday, March 31, 2025

Pasadena Unified, County, State Offices Closed, But City of Pasadena’s Open, For César Chávez Day Monday

Most state and many County offices will be closed for César Chávez Day on Monday, March 31, but all City of Pasadena departments will be open and ready to serve the public.

Pasadena Unified School District schools will close Monday to honor Chávez. Pasadena City College will also be closed for the holiday.

All banks in Pasadena are open on Monday and all U.S. mail services will be operational. The Pasadena Post Office will open.

In Los Angeles County, all courts, libraries and schools are normally closed for César Chávez Day but Eaton Fire-related recovery services will continue.

César Chávez Day is not among the 11 public holidays each year during which Pasadena suspends all non-essential City services.  The full list is on the City’s website.

The state of California has regularly observed César Chávez Day since 2000 by closing schools and state offices even before President Barack Obama proclaimed it as a federal commemorative holiday in 2014.

Monday, March 31, 2025

Bailey’s Place Foundation to Host Eaton Fire Recovery Event, Aims to Raise $400,000

Resource event in Pasadena will also raise funds for families, rebuilding, and scholarships

Nonprofit Bailey’s Place Open Door Foundation plans to rally community members at “Together We Rebuild: Eaton Fire Recovery,” a resource and fundraising event set for Saturday, May 10. Held at Friendship Pasadena Church, the event seeks to raise $400,000 — $300,000 to support essential expenses for fire-affected families and $100,000 in scholarships for first-time college students at John Muir High School and Pasadena High School.

“Our venue, Friendship Pasadena Church, is the oldest Black church in Pasadena and a historic landmark where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once spoke—a fitting location to unite the community in strength and resilience,” event organizers pointed out in a statement.

The event, scheduled for 9 a.m. through 3 p.m., will offer various services including rebuilding assistance with guidance for homeowners on financial aid, insurance claims, and construction resources; fire prevention and home safety information; financial relief resources and counseling services, according to organizers.

Monday, March 31, 2025

Symposium to Address Housing Crisis for Thousands Displaced by Eaton Fire

Community coalition organizes expert panels, resource fair for residents seeking interim housing solutions

A local coalition will host a symposium this week aimed at developing immediate housing solutions for thousands of residents still displaced by the devastating Eaton Fire.

The Altadena Coalition announced the Interim Housing Symposium will take place Wednesday, April 2 from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at their headquarters at 409 E. Woodbury Road in Altadena.

Former Pasadena Mayor and State Assemblymember Chris Holden will host the fair.

The event comes as thousands of locals remain without stable housing in the wake of the Eaton Fire evacuations. Thousands face potential homelessness without proper intervention, according to organizers.

“Our goal is to prevent mass homelessness by crafting practical, inclusive, and scalable solutions—especially for renters, uninsured families, and multigenerational households excluded from traditional recovery programs,” the coalition said in its announcement.

The symposium will feature a resource fair designed to connect attendees with local,

Monday, March 31, 2025

Newsom Signs Executive Order to Accelerate Underground Utility Placement

By André Coleman, Managing Editor

Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order late last week that will speed up the recovery of communities devastated by the January fires in Los Angeles County, including Altadena, Malibu, and Pacific Palisades.

The order suspends certain permitting and review requirements to expedite the rebuilding of utility and telecommunication infrastructure, including efforts to bury power lines underground.

“We are determined to rebuild Altadena, Malibu, and Pacific Palisades stronger and more resilient than before,” Newsom said. “Speeding up the pace that we rebuild our utility systems will help get survivors back home faster and prevent future fires. California’s electric utilities must be part of the solution to this problem.”

Some local residents in Altadena are in the early stages of the rebuilding process after the Eaton Fire destroyed thousands of homes in that area. Additionally, 17 people were killed, and thousands of acres were burned.

Since the fire, some residents have called for utility wires to be placed underground.

Monday, March 31, 2025

Hearing Date to Be Set for Alleged Eaton Fire Looters

Pair accused of burglarizing evacuated homes faces felony charges

A preliminary hearing date is scheduled to be set Tuesday, April 1 at 8:30 a.m. for two defendants charged with looting homes during January’s devastating Eaton Fire in Altadena.

Lucia Jilrara Perez, 36, and Rudy Salazar, 19, face two counts each of first-degree residential burglary. The scheduling hearing will take place in Department H of the Pasadena Courthouse at 300 E. Walnut St.

Prosecutors allege the pair entered two evacuated homes and stole property on Jan. 8, 2025, at approximately 2:30 p.m., while mandatory evacuation orders were in effect due to the wildfire. They were apprehended while allegedly attempting to enter a third residence.

The defendants pleaded not guilty during their arraignment on Jan. 10, 2025, at the Pasadena Courthouse.

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman has emphasized the severity of crimes committed during emergencies and has vowed to prosecute these cases to the fullest extent of the law.