Wednesday, March 26, 2025

To Free Up Much-Needed Space to Board 4-Legged Eaton Fire Survivors, Pasadena Humane Waives Adoption Fees For Dogs

Shelter population still impacted by Eaton Fire boarding

Pasadena Humane is calling on the community to help ease their near-capacity dog kennels by adopting dogs. To free up much-needed space, the shelter has announced that adoption fees are waived for all dogs and puppies through Friday, March 28.

Pasadena Humane continues to provide housing and care for nearly 90 dogs whose families have been displaced by the Eaton Fire, significantly reducing the number of available kennels for stray and lost dogs. To make matters more urgent, 25 stray dogs have entered the shelter in just the past five days, further straining resources.

“Unfortunately, a lot of dogs have come in over the last several days,” says Marissa Sunny, Senior Director of Placement. “This has stretched us to capacity, so we urgently need to find homes for some of the dogs in our care.”

Shelter officials estimate that at least 25 adoptions would provide temporary relief but warn that this is likely the beginning of an ongoing challenge in the coming months.

Wednesday, March 26, 2025

SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler Visits Pasadena, Highlights Disaster Recovery Efforts

By EDDIE RIVERA

Loeffler highlights $2 billion in disaster recovery loans given so far

Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, visited Pasadena on Tuesday to meet with local stakeholders and promote ongoing federal recovery programs aimed at helping businesses and homeowners rebuild following recent disasters.

Loeffler began her visit at the Altadena SBA office on Woodbury Drive, where she met with small business owners and community advocates. She then toured the SBA Disaster Assistance Center at the Pasadena City College Community Education Center, emphasizing the critical role of federal partnerships in recovery efforts.

Loeffler also noted that the SBA has now processed more than $2 billion in disaster assistance loans after the LA fires.

“What we’re emphasizing are several practical things and then some holistic things,” Loeffler said during her visit. “Practically, for disaster loans, those applications are due by March 31. The economic injury loans go through October.”

She encouraged individuals and businesses affected by recent storms and other qualifying events to visit disaster recovery centers and explore available SBA loan options.

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

LA County Officials Push For Property Tax Relief For Wildfire Survivors

Legislation sought to prevent higher assessments on homes rebuilt with mandated safety features

Los Angeles County officials are advocating for state legislation that would protect wildfire survivors from facing higher property tax assessments when rebuilding homes with mandated safety features. The effort follows concerns raised by residents in Altadena affected by the Eaton wildfire who fear being financially penalized when rebuilding their homes to meet current safety standards.

“It’s not the Assessor that makes that determination. It’s a state [process] and I’m very grateful to Assemblyman Harabedian as well as Senator Pérez who have bills pending that are going to address some of the issues that we’re finding up in Altadena and actually the Palisades,” said Supervisor Kathryn Barger during the March 24 Altadena Community Meeting.

The issue centers around how property tax assessments affect work when rebuilding after a disaster. Currently, the County permitting office allows homeowners to rebuild with plus or minus 10% or up to 200 square feet of their pre-fire home size.

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

New Podcast Focuses on Caltech Scientists’ Race to Conduct Research after the January Fires

By Andrew Moseman, CALTECH

In the aftermath of the fires that raged across Los Angeles County in January—and in particular the Eaton fire that burned through parts of Altadena and got close to NASA’s JPL, which is managed by Caltech—the Institute did what it does best: came together as a community to support individuals touched by the tragedy and started asking and addressing the most critical research questions.

In just the past couple of months, Institute scientists have deployed sensors to collect information on air quality, tested samples of soil and ash from the burn zone and beyond, monitored debris-flow models that predict areas of concern, studied how the mountains react to rains after fires, and contributed to conversations about community resilience and rebuilding.

To bring those efforts, and the information they are garnering, to public attention, the Caltech Science Exchange has launched a limited-series podcast, After the Fires, to highlight what Institute scientists and engineers have learned.

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

If Zero-Emission Cars Cut Gasoline Sales and Tax Revenue, How Will California Replace Them?

By Dan Walters, CALMATTERS

When California motorists fill their tanks, they are often paying the nation’s highest gas prices, an average of $4.65 a gallon currently and about $1.50 above the national average.

One component of California’s high gas prices is the state’s gas tax, which ranges between 60 and 70 cents a gallon and is also the nation’s highest. The 10-cent range reflects differences on how indirect levies for climate change policies are calculated.

Eight years ago, the Legislature and then-Gov. Jerry Brown enacted a big increase in gas taxes and license fees that raises more than $5 billion a year for rehabilitation and maintenance. However, Californians drive nearly a billion miles a day, and conditions of the state’s more than 400,000 lane-miles of highways, streets and roads remain among the nation’s worst — 49th among the states, according to a recent study by a libertarian think tank.

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

Cal Fire Releases Revised Fire Hazard Zones for LA County

CITY NEWS SERVICE

Cal Fire released updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps for Los Angeles County Monday, using various criteria to identify wildfire hazard areas and ranking them on a three-tiered scale.

The maps, generally updated every decade, can impact building and clearance requirements in areas deemed to be in particular hazard areas.

According to Cal Fire, the determination of “hazard” is based “on the physical conditions that create a likelihood and expected fire behavior over a 30- to 50-year period, without considering mitigation measures such as home hardening, recent wildfire or fuel reduction efforts.”

Identified hazard zones are divided into three levels — moderate, high and very high. The determination is made based on a variety of factors, including terrain, fire history, weather patterns and the presence of fire fuels such as thick vegetation.

Once the hazard zone maps are released by the state, local jurisdictions can adopt them or amend them by increasing the hazard level for particular areas.

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

As Temperatures Rise, So Do Concerns About Disease-Carrying Mosquitoes

Vector control officials warn about mosquito risks in Eaton fire burn area

The San Gabriel Valley Mosquito & Vector Control District has issued an urgent warning about unmaintained swimming pools in the Eaton fire burn area becoming potential breeding grounds for disease-carrying mosquitoes as temperatures warm across the region. District officials are taking proactive measures to prevent a public health crisis, emphasizing that a single unmaintained pool can produce up to 3 million adult mosquitoes in just one month.

“After a wildfire, pools and other large water sources may become stagnant, creating conditions for mosquitoes to grow,” according to District officials. “These mosquitoes can spread quickly throughout the community and can spread diseases such as West Nile virus and dengue, posing an additional risk to the community.”

Beginning March 17, vector control technicians started to directly treat identified sources of standing water within the burn area. The treatments included larvicides, other mosquito control products, and the distribution of mosquitofish where appropriate.

Monday, March 24, 2025

Cal Fire Releases Newly Updated Wildfire Hazard Maps for Altadena and Pasadena

Maps reflect increased fire risks following January’s devastating Eaton Fire

California officials are releasing updated fire hazard maps for Southern California counties on Monday, expanding areas classified as high and very high risk zones in the first such revision in over 14 years.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) maps identify areas most vulnerable to wildfires over the next several decades based on vegetation, terrain, fire history and local weather patterns. The timing is particularly relevant following January’s destructive Eaton and Palisades fires, which devastated Altadena.

“We are living in a new reality of extremes. California’s resilience means we will keep updating our standards in the most fire-prone areas,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement.

The maps cover eight southern counties: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Imperial, Mono and Inyo. They categorize wildfire vulnerability into moderate, high and very high risk zones, with the updated designations expected to more than double the land area subject to stricter building codes.

Monday, March 24, 2025

With LaVar Burton, Books, and Cotton Candy, Altadena Library Reopens in Storybook Style

By EDDIE RIVERA

Community celebrates their gathering place

The only thing missing from the Altadena Main Library’s grand reopening on Saturday was a rainbow to read under, and a special visor to see with.

Hundreds of community members packed the library grounds to celebrate its post-fire resurrection — and to see actor and literacy hero LaVar Burton, who brought a touch of “Reading Rainbow” magic to a town still recovering from the Eaton Fire. 

State Assemblymember John Harabedian introduced Burton with an audience sing-along of the theme from “Reading Rainbow.” 

“I can’t sing, but you all can!,” he said. 

Burton, who played Giordi La Forge on “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” (and wore that weird cool visor to see things), called Altadena a “very, very special place” and drew cheers as he read to a crowd of eager kids and grateful parents. “The American dream is alive and well in Altadena,” he said. “Today,

Monday, March 24, 2025

California Considers More Homeless Shelter Oversight after CalMatters Investigation

By Lauren Hepler, CALMATTERS

A new state bill would add more oversight to California homeless shelters after a CalMatters investigation exposed that many taxpayer-funded facilities are plagued by violence, mismanagement and low sucess rates.

The bill would build on an existing state law that was supposed to add basic checks on homeless shelter safety and sanitation. Previous CalMatters reporting found all but a handful of cities and counties have ignored the law.

Under the new proposal, local governments would be required to perform annual inspections of taxpayer-funded shelters, and cities and counties could lose state funding if they fail to correct code violations or keep neglecting to file mandatory reports. Shelter operators would also have to do more to inform residents of their rights to file complaints.

The oversight push comes amid a statewide boom in homeless shelters. California governments have spent at least $1 billion to more than double the state’s emergency shelter beds since 2018,