Coalition sets Monday deadline for commitments on toxic smoke contamination as California prepares new insurance protections

Wildfire survivors whose homes remained standing after the Eaton and Palisades fires are demanding that California’s next insurance commissioner hold insurers accountable for comprehensive testing and cleanup of smoke-contaminated properties, giving both candidates until Monday, Oct. 26, to respond.

The demand comes from six survivor organizations and former Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner, who sent a letter Thursday to state Sen. Ben Allen and former San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim. The two Democrats are competing in the Nov. 3 election.

The coalition wants insurers to pay for testing that goes beyond visible smoke and soot damage, including inspections of attics, wall cavities, ductwork and heating and air conditioning systems. The requested testing would examine hazardous substances, including lead, lithium and arsenic.

The organizations include Eaton Fire Residents United, Every Fire Survivor’s Network, LA Standing Homes Network, Surviving Structures Eaton Fire and two Pacific Palisades survivor groups.

“I want to make sure people are aware of the health risk,” Beutner told City News Service in an interview published Oct. 22.

Beutner said insurance companies must take responsibility for identifying contamination and correcting damage when it is found. Survivor advocates argue that families should not have to bear the expense of demonstrating that homes surviving a wildfire remain hazardous.

The problem has affected Altadena homeowners such as Krista Copelan, whose house survived the Eaton Fire but tested positive for potentially harmful substances, including lead and beryllium. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Copelan paid for initial testing herself and subsequently faced questions about whether cleanup would adequately address the contamination.

“We don’t want to take any risks,” Copelan told the newspaper in an earlier report about her family’s concerns.

The demands come as California prepares to implement legislation addressing wildfire smoke damage.

On Sept. 15, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bills 1642 and 1795 in Altadena. The measures establish a framework for testing and remediating wildfire smoke contamination and require insurers to cover qualifying testing, cleanup and restoration.

Assembly Bill 1642 was authored by Assemblymember John Harabedian, whose district includes Pasadena and Altadena. Assembly Bill 1795 was authored by Assemblymember Mike Gipson and sponsored by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara.

The California Department of Insurance estimates that more than 13,000 of approximately 40,000 insurance claims arising from the January fires involve smoke damage to homes that did not burn.

The new laws are scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, 2027, with additional technical standards to be developed by state agencies.

Allen has advocated stronger insurance enforcement and wildfire risk reduction within the existing insurance market. Kim has proposed a publicly operated disaster insurance system intended to provide broader protection against catastrophic losses.

For Altadena survivors, the coalition’s immediate question is whether the next insurance commissioner will ensure that insurers investigate contamination thoroughly and pay for the work needed to make damaged homes safe to occupy.

The virtual Altadena Coalition of Neighborhood Associations forum on Tuesday also features Eaton Fire Collaboratory staff on Altadena 2.0

Los Angeles County Public Works, Los Angeles County Fire and the Altadena Sheriff’s Station will present Super El Niño Preparations at Tuesday’s online forum of the Altadena Coalition of Neighborhood Associations, known as ACONA. Eaton Fire Collaboratory staff will follow with Altadena 2.0 — Reimagining Altadena.

The forum takes place on Zoom.

Los Angeles County reported Sept. 30 that El Niño conditions are present, with the potential of more rainfall and more intense rainfall in the coming months, putting burn scar areas at risk for flooding, rockslides, mudslides and debris flows.

The county Department of Public Works and partner agencies have distributed more than 4,000 sandbags to Altadena residents. Residents within the Eaton and Palisades areas can get up to 25 filled sandbags at the Los Angeles County Public Works Fleet Maintenance Yard, 252 Mountain View St., in Altadena, which is open through April 15, 2027. Sandbag supplies are also stocked at fire stations.

ACONA was established in 2010 to give Altadena neighborhood associations and neighborhood watch groups a way to network and share ideas and best practices. Its forums bring those groups and residents together with the officials and service providers responsible for topics affecting the community.

Each meeting features presentations from the relevant entities and a moderated public Q&A. Ahead of the forum, the coalition’s website offers a form to submit a question, along with a separate form to suggest a future forum topic.

All are welcome to attend.

ACONA forum: Super El Niño Preparations and Altadena 2.0 — Reimagining Altadena will run on Tuesday, October 27 at 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Online via Zoom. For more information, visit https://www.aconaonline.org/meetings.

Pasadena returns to Pacific standard time at 2 a.m. Nov. 1; Rep. Judy Chu voted against the House-passed plan for permanent daylight time

Pasadena residents will set their clocks back one hour early Sunday, Nov. 1, when daylight saving time ends and California returns to Pacific standard time.

At 2 a.m. local time, clocks will read 1 a.m. again, and the hour from 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. will repeat, according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the federal agency that publishes the nation’s daylight saving time rules.

The night gains an hour on the clock, though, of course, that does not guarantee every resident an extra hour of sleep.

The change shifts the region from Pacific daylight time, seven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time, to Pacific standard time, eight hours behind.

The schedule is set by federal law. The Uniform Time Act of 1966, as amended in 2005, starts daylight saving time on the second Sunday of March and ends it on the first Sunday of November. Those dates took effect March 1, 2007, replacing the earlier April and October schedule. This year’s daylight saving period began March 8.

The U.S. Department of Transportation regulates time zones and daylight saving time.

Federal law overrides any conflicting state or local rule on changeover dates, so Pasadena cannot set a schedule of its own.

This year, state Senate Bill 1197, titled “Permanent standard time,” was introduced Feb. 19. A Senate committee voted 10-1 on April 7 to recommend that it pass and be re-referred to the Appropriations Committee. The bill was placed on the Appropriations suspense file April 20, and at a May 14 hearing it was held in committee and under submission.

In Washington, the House voted 308-117 on July 14 to pass H.R. 139, the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025, which would make daylight saving time permanent. The bill was introduced Jan. 3, 2025. Republicans supported it 193-22, Democrats 114-95, and one independent voted yes.

The Senate received the bill July 15 and referred it to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee just last week.

Rep. Judy Chu, who represents Pasadena, was among the 117 members who voted no.

The state and federal proposals point in opposite directions: the federal bill would keep clocks on daylight time year-round, while the California bill sought permanent standard time.

Other approaches have been referred to House committees. H.R. 300, introduced Jan. 9, 2025, by Rep. Celeste Maloy, would let states choose year-round daylight time. H.R. 7378, introduced Feb. 4 by Rep. W. Gregory Steube, proposes amending the Calder Act to permanently adjust American time.

Rep. Vern Buchanan has said a permanent daylight time provision was added by amendment to H.R. 7389, the Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026, a transportation bill introduced Feb. 5 by Rep. Brett Guthrie. A House committee ordered that bill reported, as amended, by a 48-1 vote on May 21. The vote covered the full transportation package.

The Senate has acted on the idea before. It passed a separate, earlier bill, S. 623, the Sunshine Protection Act of 2021, by unanimous consent March 15, 2022, during the 117th Congress.

Unless the law changes, clocks will spring forward again on the second Sunday of March, which falls on March 14, 2027.

Eliot Arts Magnet School students take over the streets around the Altadena Sheriff’s Station in Halloween bash. [Photo by Eddie Rivera/Pasadena Now]

At the Altadena Sheriff’s Station, a Halloween celebration brings back a school tradition and gives fire-displaced families a place to trick-or-treat

The zombies were back in Altadena Saturday night. And this time, they came dancing.

About 150 students from Eliot Arts Magnet School, dressed in tattered clothing, dark makeup and suitably frightening costumes, took over the street outside the Altadena Sheriff’s Station for a flash mob performance of a Michael Jackson “Thriller” mashup.

They twisted, lurched and stomped in unison as hundreds of spectators crowded around them, phones raised to capture the spectacle.

But beneath the theatrical makeup was a story of a community still finding its footing after the devastating Eaton Fire.

The students, under the direction of Billy Rough, had traditionally performed a version of the famous dance each year. That tradition was interrupted when the January 2025 fire destroyed their school campus.

Rough said the students had been unable to perform the number since the fire. An invitation to participate in Saturday’s Haunted Jail celebration finally brought the tradition back.

The event itself grew from a similar desire to restore something familiar.

Altadena Sheriff’s Station Capt. Ethan Marquez said he conceived the Halloween celebration after realizing how many children had lost not only their homes, but also the neighborhoods where they once went trick-or-treating.

“After the fires, a lot of people lost their homes, obviously, but the kids had no place to go trick or treat,” Marquez said. “We thought this was a great way to share a station with the community, bring kids out and give them a safe place to trick or treat.”

The event transformed the station grounds into a Halloween attraction, complete with a haunted jail, towering skeletons, colorful lighting, decorated tents and crowds of costumed families collecting candy.

The haunted station itself?  Well, lots of screaming in the usually quiet halls of the station, as kids and parents negotiated their way through the maze of lights and fog and skeletons. Marquez said between 25 and 50 people helped organize the event, following months of planning meetings.

Among the volunteers were residents who had once created haunted houses in their own neighborhoods before losing their homes in the fire.

“A lot of people from the community that lost their homes that used to put on haunted houses in the community, now they’re helping us put this one on for the rest of the community,” Marquez said.

It was an evening of deliberate make-believe in a community that has endured enough real-life horror.

And when the young zombies gathered beneath the streetlights, moving together to the familiar rhythms of “Thriller,” the performance became something more than a Halloween spectacle.

For a few minutes, a school tradition interrupted by disaster was alive again.

2024 Doo Dah Parade Royal Night Catch-22 and 2024 Doo Dah Parade Royal Light Helen Roper at the Dooh Dah Queen tryouts at the Old Towne Pub on Oct. 27, 2024. [Paul Takizawa / Pasadena Now]

Ever wanted to wear a crown without the inconvenience of a bloodline?

Doo Dah has never cared about pedigree, poise or sensible shoes — only nerve. Pasadena’s irreverent tradition has celebrated the gloriously odd since 1978, and every reign needs an heir.

Enter the Doo Dah Queen Tryouts at Old Towne Pub in Old Pas, where hopefuls get three minutes apiece to win the room. Sing, dance or crack jokes. Elaborate costumes are encouraged, and the crown is open to every gender and orientation. Birds, dogs and lizards have competed in years past, so the bar sits somewhere between Broadway and the backyard.

Best to leave the kids — and your sanity — at home for this one.

Sign-ups and live music from Ma the Band start at 2 p.m. The competition kicks off at 3 p.m., with Rocket Man emceeing and former queens expected in the house. Reigning Queen Bootleg Meg crowns her successor ahead of the Nov. 22 Doo Dah. Light Bringer Project and the Doo Dah Preservation Society produce, admission is free (read: no excuses) and donations are welcome.

A little lineage for the newcomers. Light Bringer Project, a Pasadena nonprofit, has steered Doo Dah since 1995. After 2020 and 2021 went virtual, the whole glorious circus returned to Old Pasadena in 2023, with Queen Mama’s Sunshine wearing the crown that year.

The pub knows the drill. Tryouts landed here on Oct. 27, 2024, when Sparrow Dena took the crown and two new titles joined the court: Royal Night, won by Romo the Robo, and Royal Light, claimed by a contestant performing as Helen Roper. Performances ran five minutes back then. This year’s slots are a tighter three, so edit accordingly.

Then came a year that asked more of everyone. Citing wildfire-related pressures and uncertainty over education funding, organizers postponed the 2025 street parade. Doo Dah refused to sit out entirely. On Nov. 23, 2025, the faithful took over Dog Haus Biergarten and Old Towne Pub, and Meghan Kanyer, better known as Bootleg Meg, won the crown on her first try.

Which brings us to Sunday. At the 2024 tryouts, a Pasadena contestant named Kitty Donahue asked the question every Doo Dah hopeful already knows the answer to: “Where else can I be weird?” Here, on a three-minute clock. Whoever claims the crown carries it into Doo Dah’s Nov. 22 date, with details still to come.

Find the Holly Street entrance, bring your boldest wig and practice the wave — your public awaits.

Old Towne Pub, 66 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena (enter at 34 Holly St.), Sunday, Oct. 25, sign-ups and music 2 p.m., competition 3 p.m., free (donations welcome), pasadenadoodah@gmail.com, 626-590-1134

More than 300 rebuilding families, community partners and government officials are expected to gather Saturday for a block party and ribbon cutting marking the completion of demonstration homes designed to help Eaton Fire survivors navigate the rebuilding process.

The Eaton Fire Recovery Block Party will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday in the 3300 block of Tonia Avenue, according to organizers.

The demonstration homes were developed by Foothill Catalog and Williams Rebuild as educational resources for families seeking to rebuild following the fire. Organizers said the homes have been used throughout construction to demonstrate building designs, costs and ways to accelerate the rebuilding process.

More than 130 families are receiving assistance with home rebuilding through Foothill Catalog and Williams Rebuild, according to organizers.

The completed homes will be transferred to Eaton Fire survivors at cost through the Greenline Project, organizers said.

Expected attendees include Rep. Judy Chu, D-Pasadena; state Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez, D-Pasadena; Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger; county Public Works Director Mark Pestrella; Williams Rebuild founder and CEO Sadie Williams; and Foothill Catalog founders Alex Athensen and Cynthia Sigler.

The event will include tours of completed, furnished homes and opportunities for rebuilding families to speak with architects, builders, government officials and recovery partners.

[photo credit: Sheriff’s Support Group of Altadena]

The Sheriff’s Support Group of Altadena pairs the revived event with a trunk-or-treat and outdoor festival

The Sheriff’s Support Group of Altadena will stage a haunted jail inside the Altadena Sheriff’s Station on Saturday, Oct. 24, reviving an event the group says has not been held in nearly two decades.

Admission is free, but space inside the station is limited, and the group is offering free timed entry tickets to guarantee a spot. Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose Fifth District covers Altadena, put the gap at more than two decades in her Oct. 16 newsletter.

She wrote that she got a sneak peek, adding, “I can assure you the Haunted Jail lives up to its name!”

The haunted jail runs from 5 to 9 p.m. at the station, 780 E. Altadena Drive, with timed entry slots every 15 minutes. Entry is guaranteed only with a reservation. “Walk-up guests are welcome, and we’ll do our best to accommodate as many as possible,” the group says.

The group says it created the Altadena Haunted Jail two decades ago and is giving it “a post-fire reboot,” pairing it with a trunk-or-treat and a community festival.

The festival will be outside, in Triangle Park and along El Molino Avenue. It will include a trunk-or-treat with candy provided by local organizations, food trucks, vendors and a dance performance of “Thriller.” Visitors who find the haunted jail too scary can still attend the festival, the group says.

Galen Wilkes will present clips of classic Hollywood horror films. The John Tirabasso Youth Jazz Ensemble, which is open to middle and high school students, will perform outside throughout the night.

The Sheriff’s Support Group of Altadena raises money and recruits volunteers to support the deputies of the Altadena Sheriff’s Station. Capt. Ethan Marquez commands the station. The group says the station opened Aug. 15, 1927, and will mark its 100th anniversary on Aug. 15, 2027.

The event is free, but the group says donations help cover its costs and support other projects, including the Altadena Forever Run on Jan. 10, 2027.

NEED TO KNOW

Event: The Altadena Haunted Jail. When: Saturday, Oct. 24. Time: 5 to 9 p.m. Cost: Free; timed entry tickets guarantee entry, and walk-up guests are admitted as space allows. Where: Altadena Sheriff’s Station, 780 E. Altadena Drive, Altadena. For more, visit https://www.ssgaltadena.org/

Bob Lucas Memorial Library and Cornerstone Theater Company will host an all-ages, interactive sing-along inspired by “Hamilton: An American Musical” from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Altadena, according to the Altadena Library District’s event listing.

The program, titled “The Library Where It Happens: Unrehearsed Hamilton Night,” will take place in the Bob Lucas Reading Court at Bob Lucas Memorial Library and Literacy Center, 2659 Lincoln Ave.

Audience members can join in and perform without auditions, according to the district.

The advertised activities include music, crafts, costumes and light refreshments, and attendees are encouraged to dress up.

The district connects the evening to America’s 250th anniversary, creativity, storytelling and community.

The event is scheduled outdoors and begins after the branch’s regular Saturday closing time of 5 p.m.

For event and access information, the branch can be reached at (626) 798-8338.

NEED TO KNOW: The Library Where It Happens: Unrehearsed Hamilton Night” will take place Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Bob Lucas Reading Court at Bob Lucas Memorial Library and Literacy Center, 2659 Lincoln Ave., Altadena. For admission cost and parking details, including location and fees, call the library at (626) 798-8338. For more, visit altadenalibrary.libnet.info/event/16298526 

The two 11-day sites are among 123 opening countywide Oct. 24; voters may use any vote center in Los Angeles County

In-person voting for the Nov. 3 general election begins in Pasadena on Saturday, Oct. 24, when two vote centers open for an 11-day run through Election Day.

The two sites are among 123 vote centers opening across Los Angeles County on Oct. 24, Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean C. Logan announced in a news release Oct. 23.

More Pasadena vote centers open Saturday, Oct. 31.

Pasadena voters will decide local as well as county and state-wide issues. On the ballot locally: a proposed city parcel tax for fire protection, paramedic services and wildfire preparedness and response on Nov. 3. Voters in the relevant districts will also elect representatives to three seats on the Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education and three seats on the Pasadena Area Community College District Board of Trustees.

The 11-day vote centers are in Derian Hall at Armenian Cilicia Evangelical Church, 339 S. Santa Anita Ave., and in the multipurpose room at Robinson Park Recreation Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave. Both are open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day before Election Day and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Starting Oct. 31, 12 Pasadena locations will be open as vote centers through Election Day, including the two that open Oct. 24. They include Pasadena City College’s Creveling Lounge, 1570 E. Colorado Blvd.; the Jefferson Branch Library auditorium, 1500 E. Villa St.; Rosemont Pavilion, 700 Seco St.; and the Victory Park Recreation Center gym, 2575 Paloma St.

Countywide, another 523 vote centers open that day, bringing the total to 646, City News Service reported.

Pasadena voters may use any vote center in Los Angeles County, not only those in the city. Vote centers offer in-person voting, voter registration and drop-off of vote-by-mail ballots, the registrar’s office said.

Eligible residents who missed the registration deadline can still vote. At any vote center, they can complete a conditional voter registration under state election law and receive a ballot to mark on the voting machine. The ballot is counted once the registration is verified.

The registrar’s office urged voters to review their ballots carefully and vote early because the ballot includes many contests and candidates. Voters can mark their choices ahead of time on a phone or computer with the county’s optional Interactive Sample Ballot and transfer them to the ballot marking device at a vote center, the office said.

Election materials are available in 18 languages, according to the registrar. Voters can request materials in their preferred language by calling (800) 815-2666, option 3, and Spanish-speaking voters can call (213) 358-2701 for direct assistance.

Vote-by-mail ballots can also be returned at any of eight official drop boxes in Pasadena, including one at City Hall, 100 N. Garfield Ave. The boxes are open around the clock until 8 p.m. Nov. 3. Mailed ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 3, and election officials recommend mailing them at least seven days before Election Day, City News Service reported.

NEED TO KNOW

Event: November 3, 2026 General Election, in-person voting at Pasadena’s 11-day vote centers. When: Saturday, Oct. 24, through Tuesday, Nov. 3. Time: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Monday, Nov. 2; 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3. Where: Armenian Cilicia Evangelical Church, Derian Hall, 339 S. Santa Anita Ave., Pasadena; Robinson Park Recreation Center, Multi-Purpose Room, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena. For more, call (800) 815-2666 or visit https://www.cityofpasadena.net/city-clerk/general-election-2026/

I am writing to let you know that I have endorsed Dennis McNamara for the PUSD Board, District 7 (which includes West Pasadena).

I’ve known Dennis for several years now and seen firsthand the value of his extensive knowledge and experience, in particular regarding finance (he is a longtime member and current chair of PUSD’s Citizen Oversight Committee responsible for monitoring expenditures of bond proceeds), his dedication to civic affairs and adhering to legal compliance and the highest ethical standards, and his commitment to working collaboratively to make our community a better one. Dennis will be highly additive to the PUSD Board, and we need a thoughtful, dedicated Boardmember to represent us going forward when our current Boardmember Dr. Yarma Velázquez steps away at the end of her term later this year.

West Pasadena is deeply invested in PUSD—in helping to ensure that through education every child in Pasadena can reach their full potential (I was the first Councilmember* to advocate for adding public education as a general plan guiding principle), and of course now providing significant, direct financial support to PUSD as permitted by Ballot Measures I and J.    With development proposals coming at both of West Pasadena’s two remaining public school sites (San Rafael Elementary where a $128 million replacement school/campus is proposed to be built, and Linda Vista Elementary where PUSD seeks to convert the former school site into housing and a park), the choice of who will represent us on the PUSD Board is perhaps more important today than it has ever been.

Before making this endorsement, I interviewed Dennis and the other candidate, Cynthia Torres, in detail;  Justin Chapman moderated a forum sponsored by Linda Vista Annandale Association and San Rafael Neighborhood Association with both candidates (I introduced the two candidates and Justin at the forum); and I spoke with a number of thought leaders in West Pasadena.   Cynthia is endorsed by several prominent groups, worked on education issues in Santa Monica for years, and served briefly on PUSD’s Citizens Oversight Committee.   She has many strengths and I hope she will stay involved in Pasadena long-term.    For me, Dr. Velázquez, several other City Councilmembers* and many other community leaders, Dennis’s established record of exemplary service here in Pasadena made him the clear choice.   I am confident he will work extremely hard to move PUSD forward, improve the District’s relationship with other stakeholders and the community at large, and always keep the education of our kids in the classroom top of mind.

Ballots are already out so I hope each and every one of you takes the time to vote by mail, drop off your ballot at one of the available ballot drop-off sites, or vote the old fashioned way by going to your polling place on November 3!  And I hope like me,  you will cast your vote for Dennis McNamara.

Steve Madison is a Pasadena City Councilmember*

*Titles for ID Only