Wednesday, July 8, 2026

City Issues Orders to Stop Tree Removals by PUSD

By ANDRÈ COLEMAN, Managing Editor

Special closed session City Council meeting ordered for Wednesday includes discussion of pending litigation

City officials issued several stop work orders last week to the Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) regarding the removal of several trees.

The orders came after the district had a city arborist removed from a local campus amid public opposition to a PUSD plan to remove about 200 trees across the district.

The city contends the district must comply with Pasadena’s Tree Protection Ordinance before removing protected trees.

Meanwhile, district officials have said the removals are necessary to remediate contaminated soil and protect student health and are governed by the state.

“The city notified PUSD that they are subject to our Tree Protection Ordinance which requires a permit to remove a protected tree. PUSD continued removal activity at various sites which has resulted in the posting of stop work orders. The city must conduct inspections to determine what trees are protected and therefore subject to the ordinance. The city has not been granted permission to conduct the inspections, and the stop work orders remain in effect,” said Public Information Officer Lisa Derderian.

Crews reportedly cut down four trees at John Muir High School last week, and according to published reports told protesters they would be arrested if they interfered with the removal of the trees. No one was arrested. The removed trees included several protected trees.

Efforts to remove the trees have led to an increasingly contentious battle with the city and local residents.

Jessica Richards, a member of the city’s Urban Forestry Advisory Committee speaking in a personal capacity, told the City Council last month that the science does not support removing the trees to remediate soil and that the Department of Toxic Substances Control had told her in writing it does not mandate removing all of them.

Richards argued the district had sidestepped Pasadena’s tree-protection ordinance by invoking an exemption for hazardous trees.

At that same meeting several local residents spoke out against removing the trees.

“I believe the school district wants to strike a balance between what the state is telling them about student safety, and what the community is telling them about the value of trees,” Councilmember Rick Cole told Pasadena Now after that meeting. “I also believe the right thing for the school district to do is to abide by the city law and evaluate that balance in a way that is public, transparent and credible.”

The school board held a special meeting on the matter late last week.

The City Council announced its own special meeting for Wednesday to discuss “Consideration of Initiation of Litigation,” leaving some to speculate that the issue between the two sides has become even more contentious.