Thursday, August 6, 2026

Guest Opinion | Calmatters’ Dan Walters: California’s Catch-22: Who Should Pay When Utilities’ Power Lines Cause Wildfires?

By Dan Walters, CALMATTERS

The timing could not have been better — or worse.

The findings from a long-awaited investigation into the origins of a deadly Southern California wildfire were released Tuesday, pinning it on an electrical arc from a Southern California Edison transmission tower.

Simultaneously, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration was asking legislators to limit the financial liability of SoCal Edison and other investor-owned utilities when their equipment ignites wildfires, which have become an inescapable fact of Californians’ lives.

The report dealt with the Eaton Fire, one of several that swept through the Los Angeles area in January 2025, driven by hot winter winds known as Santa Anas. Once ignited, it quickly engulfed communities in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, particularly Altadena, charring more than 14,000 acres, destroying more than 9,000 homes and other buildings and claiming at least 19 lives. It took firefighters 24 days to fully extinguish it.

“After 18 months of thorough review of all evidence,

Thursday, August 6, 2026

Final DENA C.A.R.E.S. Convening on Altadena Housing Set for Thursday

The final convening of DENA C.A.R.E.S., an Eaton Fire recovery initiative of the Pasadena nonprofit Day One, is scheduled for Thursday, August 6, at The Collaboratory, 540 West Woodbury Road in Altadena. The Eaton Fire Collaborative announced the gathering on social media, setting it from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. under the theme “Building Altadena’s Housing Future.”

The Collaborative described the convening as a review of coalition work, data and survivor experiences. More than 18 months have passed since the fire began on January 7, 2025.

The announcement names funders and philanthropic partners among those invited. Residents who wish to attend should contact Day One in advance.

Day One defines DENA C.A.R.E.S. as Community, Access, Resilience, Engagement and Support. The nonprofit, based at 175 North Euclid Avenue in Pasadena, created the initiative after the fire to help residents of Altadena, Pasadena and Sierra Madre recover and rebuild, and describes it as providing housing education, navigation support, emergency housing resources and opportunities for community connection.

Thursday, August 6, 2026

Judge Bars City From Halting PUSD Tree and Soil Removal at Nine Campuses, Portions of Ed Center

City argued for the first time that the district’s exemption resolution is “invalid on its face”

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Wednesday barred the city of Pasadena from halting Pasadena Unified School District’s removal of trees and fire-contaminated soil at nine campuses and portions of the Education Center, a day after the city argued in a court filing that the school board resolution the district used to exempt itself from local tree rules is “invalid on its face.”

The preliminary injunction issued by Judge Joseph Lipner prohibits the city, its agents and anyone acting in concert with them from issuing stop-work orders against the district’s ongoing tree and soil removal and remediation project at the nine schools, or from attempting to enforce Pasadena’s tree protection ordinance there, pending trial in the case.

The order also bars enforcement at portions of the district’s Education Center at 351 S. Hudson Ave. — but only at areas the judge circled and initialed in an exhibit to the order,

Thursday, August 6, 2026

Altadena Music Theatre Opens “Grease” on a Stage It Built Itself

Nineteen months after the Eaton Fire destroyed its Farnsworth Park home, the company returns tonight at a temporary outdoor venue at Mountain View Mausoleum

Altadena Music Theatre had to build a stage before it could put on a show. It opens “Grease” on that stage tonight.

The production is the company’s first fully staged musical since the January 2025 Eaton Fire destroyed the Charles S. Farnsworth Park Amphitheatre, where it had performed. Rather than wait for a permanent venue, the nonprofit assembled a temporary outdoor theater with custom staging and seating on the grounds of Mountain View Mausoleum, at 2300 North Marengo Avenue in Altadena — a little more than a mile from where the amphitheater stood.

Curtain is 8:00 p.m. Performances run Thursdays through Sundays until Sunday, August 16, eight in all.

“Grease” has a book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. Oliver Azcarate directs, with musical direction by Chris Wade and choreography by Melissa Schade.

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Altadena’s Elected Officials Call for Accountability After County Concludes Edison Tower Caused Eaton Fire

Altadena’s elected officials called for accountability and pledged continued support for fire survivors Tuesday after the Los Angeles County Fire Department released investigative reports concluding that electrical arcing on an out-of-service Southern California Edison tower caused the Eaton Fire — a determination the utility said it is reviewing.

The reports close an 18-month investigation into the January 2025 fire that killed 19 people and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in Altadena and parts of Pasadena. It is the first official determination of the fire’s cause, and it arrives while litigation continues: a trial is set for Jan. 25, 2027; survivors face a Nov. 30 deadline to seek compensation directly from Edison; and portions of the reports remain redacted amid an ongoing District Attorney review.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose Fifth District includes Altadena, said in a statement, “The community deserves transparency, accountability and access to the facts. While the report does not close this chapter, I hope it brings greater clarity and a measure of closure to those who have endured so much.

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

LA County Moves on Federal Investment Accounts for Foster Children

Supervisors gave child welfare officials 90 days to produce an outreach plan that would run through 2028

A $1,000 federal deposit is waiting for eligible American children born in January 2025. On Tuesday, Los Angeles County started working out how to get it to the children in its own custody.

The Board of Supervisors approved Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s motion giving the Department of Children and Family Services 90 days to produce a plan for reaching foster youth and the families caring for them.

The accounts opened nationwide on July 4. But the deposit goes only to children born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028, and under Treasury guidance a parent or foster parent — not the county — must file for it, The Imprint reported in June.

That puts the paperwork in the hands of resource families, including those in Pasadena and unincorporated Altadena.

The federal government established Fostering the Future accounts on June 11, 2026,

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Wildfire Relief Takes $9 Billion Off a Record County Property Roll

Altadena’s reduced assessments hold until owners rebuild, and 49 homes were finished as of May 19

More than $9 billion in taxable value came off Los Angeles County’s property rolls this year, written down for owners whose homes burned in Altadena and Pacific Palisades.

Even so, the county still set a record for total value. Assessor Jeff Prang announced on July 14 that the 2026 Assessment Roll closed at $2.272 trillion in net taxable value, up $96 billion, or 4.42 percent, over last year — the sixteenth straight year of growth. It will generate more than $27 billion in property tax revenue for public education, public safety, healthcare, libraries, parks and other local government services, he said.

But the record is a net figure, and the write-down sits inside it. Under state law those reductions are temporary. They come off the books as owners rebuild.

As of May 19, 2026, 49 Altadena homes had been completed and more than 1,400 were under construction,

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

County Orders a Hard Look at Its Own Earthquake Readiness, and Turns to Pasadena for Help

Supervisors set a September 29 deadline; the departments under review are the same ones that answer calls in unincorporated Altadena

The County’s plan to find out whether it can survive the next big earthquake runs through Pasadena.

The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to require the County’s Office of Emergency Management to report back on September 29 with an assessment of Los Angeles County’s own earthquake readiness — its buildings, its staff, and its ability to keep serving residents after a major quake.

The motion, from Fifth District Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose district covers Pasadena and Altadena, directs County officials to engage seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones and researchers from Caltech and UCLA.

Jones has held an appointment at Caltech’s Seismological Laboratory in Pasadena since 1984. She ran the U.S. Geological Survey’s Pasadena office and originated the ShakeOut drill. Three of the four County departments named for that presentation — Public Works, Fire and the Sheriff’s Department — are the first responders in unincorporated Altadena.

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Bailey, Kealing for Pasadena Unified Board Races as Election Field Takes Shape

By ANDRÈ COLEMAN, Managing Editor

Incumbent Michelle Richardson Bailey and challenger Felita R. Kealing have qualified for the Nov. 3 Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education election, further solidifying the field for four seats that will be contested this fall.

Bailey, who represents District 3, qualified Monday after filing her nomination papers Aug. 3. She will face Veronica Elias, who qualified July 30 after filing her nomination papers the same day.

“I’m happy to have the opportunity to continue representing the students and families of District 3 as their school board trustee,” said Richardson Bailey. “If reelected, in addition to prioritizing our students, I am committed to cultivating a culture of change on the school board and the district as a whole.”

In District 1, Kealing qualified Aug. 3 after filing her nomination papers July 29. She will challenge incumbent Kimberly Kenne, who qualified July 24 after filing on July 22. Another prospective District 1 candidate, Dianne Lewis,

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Metro Offers Up to $600 to Drive Less, Expands Driving Reduction Program

CITY NEWS SERVICE

Metro Wednesday was expanding its One Car Challenge pilot program countywide, offering Los Angeles County households up to $600 to reduce driving and use alternative forms of transportation.

The second phase of the program builds on a 2023 pilot in Santa Monica and will expand participation from 300 households to as many as 2,000 households across L.A. County, according to Metro.

Participants who keep at least one household vehicle parked at home for five weeks while using public transit, walking, bicycling, carpooling or other transportation options can earn up to $600, or as much as $120 per week, the agency said.

Metro officials said participants will use the GoCarma smartphone app to track odometer readings and travel behavior during the program.

“The pilot showed a significant behavioral shift away from solo car trips, with the most notable increases seen in walking and micromobility,” Metro said in a statement. “Data tracked during the initial phase revealed that participants were 2.6 times more likely to avoid driving an extra vehicle,