Thursday, September 17, 2026

Supervisors Order Progress Reports on Fire Review That Faulted Altadena Repopulation

The McChrystal Group study found Los Angeles County had no updated recovery plan, and a Barger–Horvath motion directs departments to report on how they will carry out its 25 recommendations

Los Angeles County supervisors on Tuesday, Sept. 15, ordered regular progress reports on a second independent review of the January 2025 fires, a study that found residents returned to Altadena without the access-pass system used in the Palisades burn area.

The review concluded the county lacks an updated recovery plan and a formal repopulation decision framework, and that many of the structures the county built in real time depended on improvisation and individual relationships rather than standing plans and rehearsed systems. The motion by Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Lindsey P. Horvath was approved unanimously, according to a news release issued by Horvath’s office. The release said the motion requires regular reporting on implementation, including who is responsible, what resources are needed and what barriers must be addressed to complete near-, mid- and long-term recommendations,

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Printing Finished on 3D-Printed Concrete Home for Altadena Eaton Fire Survivor

PCI Builders says the Spanish-style house for Cindy Lopez is moving through inspections after RIC Robotics printed its concrete walls

A robotic printer has finished the concrete walls of an Altadena house being rebuilt for Cindy Lopez, whose home burned in the Eaton Fire, according to a release from the project team.

The team, led by PCI Builders, calls it Los Angeles County’s first approved 3D-printed home, according to the release. The team says it had to work out a construction approach acceptable to county permitting and inspection. In an April release, fire-technology company Sonic Fire Tech said the county issued PCI Builders a permit in late February for a 3D-printed concrete home in the Eaton Fire rebuild zone, which it called the county’s first.

Plumbing and electrical work are moving through inspection, and roof trusses are on site, the release said.

The house is Spanish-style, with arched windows, sills and headers. The release said RIC Robotics printed the design as drawn rather than asking the team to simplify the plans.

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Guest Opinion | Calmatters’ Aimery Thomas: Did Altadena’s Unincorporated Status Play A Role In Safety Lapses During The Eaton Fire?

By Aimery Thomas, CALMATTERS

After an 18-month investigation, Los Angeles County concluded that Southern California Edison equipment ignited the Eaton Fire, last year. At least 19 people died; 9,419 structures were destroyed, and an entire community was devastated.

The report answers how the fire started but not a more consequential question: Who in government is fully accountable to Altadena?

The county’s findings don’t explain why residents received so little disaster preparedness or outreach, why warnings failed to reach many before the fire reached their homes, how county public safety resources were allocated during the first 24 hours, or why protective systems were constrained by outdated policies, unclear authority, staffing shortages and incompatible communications.

Most Californians experience county government alongside city government. In Altadena, Los Angeles County is the default government.

Altadena’s elected town council has no municipal authority and only advises the county. The County Board of Supervisors serves as an ersatz city council, and a supervisor functions — in the county’s own description — as the “mayor” for dozens of communities.

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Dodgers Foundation Plans Two New Dreamfields at Altadena’s Farnsworth Park

By ANDRÈ COLEMAN, Managing Editor

The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation will invest $1.4 million to build two baseball and softball fields at Charles S. Farnsworth Park, marking the next phase of efforts to restore recreational facilities damaged in the Eaton Fire.

The foundation is partnering with the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation to develop the fields, which will be the 69th and 70th completed through its Dodgers Dreamfields program.

A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for Nov. 5 and will include a shovel dedication and remarks from foundation leaders, county parks representatives and project sponsors.

“From the beginning, we knew our commitment to Altadena wouldn’t end with building Dodgers Dreamfields at Loma Alta Park,” said Nichol McKenzie-Whiteman, CEO of the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation.

McKenzie-Whiteman said the organization has continued to support the community through its Dodgers Dreamteam youth program, food distributions and access to educational and health resources.

“The two new Dodgers Dreamfields at Charles S.

Thursday, September 17, 2026

UCLA Makes Football, Basketball Tickets Free for Students

CITY NEWS SERVICE

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) will make tickets for all its home football and basketball games free for students, the school announced Wednesday.

The policy takes effect Saturday when UCLA hosts Purdue in the Bruins’ Big Ten home opener at the Rose Bowl.

“Our students are the heartbeat of UCLA,” said Tim Harris, chief executive officer (CEO) and director of UCLA Athletics. “Their passion, energy and pride create an atmosphere that makes a difference for our student-athletes and coaches. We want as many students as possible experiencing UCLA Athletics, supporting their fellow Bruins and helping us build one of the best home environments in college sports. We need our students to show up, be loud, and make a difference.”

Eligible UCLA undergraduate and graduate students will be able to claim complimentary tickets to home football games through their student ticket account beginning on the Monday of each game week. Registration for Saturday’s football game against Purdue opened at 10 a.m.

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Pasadena Unified Board Races Get October 5 Candidate Forum as Three Seats Head to Ballot

Voters in Districts 1, 3 and 7 choose board members Nov. 3; the District 5 race will be canceled

Seven groups, including the Blair Middle and High School PTSA and the League of Women Voters Pasadena Area, announced they co-sponsor a Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education candidate forum at 6:30 p.m. Monday, October 5.

The forum comes ahead of the Tuesday, Nov. 3, general election, in which the district called for four board seats, in sub-districts 1, 3, 5 and 7, each for a four-year term. Only three of those races will be on the ballot. Incumbent Patrice Marshall McKenzie was the only candidate to qualify in District 5, so she will be appointed in lieu of election and the race will be canceled.

The forum will be held at the Pasadena Unified School District headquarters, livestreamed and offered with translation, according to the release. The co-sponsors are theMiddle middHigh School school PTSA, the PTA Council of Pasadena Unified School District,

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Dodgers Foundation Announces $1.4 Million Dreamfields Project in Altadena

CITY NEWS SERVICE

The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation announced Wednesday a $1.4 million project to build two Dodgers Dreamfields at Charles S. Farnsworth Park in Altadena as part of ongoing recovery efforts following the Eaton Fire.

The two fields will be the 69th and 70th Dodgers Dreamfields developed by the foundation and are part of broader efforts to restore Farnsworth Park, which was among the recreational facilities severely affected by the January 2025 wildfire, according to the foundation.

A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for Nov. 5 and will include a shovel dedication and a brief program featuring foundation leadership, representatives from the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation and project sponsors.

“From the beginning, we knew our commitment to Altadena wouldn’t end with building Dodgers Dreamfields at Loma Alta Park,” Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation CEO Nichol McKenzie-Whiteman said. “Over the past year, we’ve continued to respond to what families needed most by bringing our Dodgers Dreamteam programming, which includes access to education and health resources for the community,

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Suicide Prevention Summit Returns to Pasadena City College Friday With Arts and Youth Organizations on the Program

The Los Angeles Suicide Prevention Network holds the second day of its annual summit Friday at Pasadena City College, running from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. under the theme “The Strength We Share: Power in Community.”

It is the second September in a row that the countywide network has brought a day of its summit to the Pasadena campus, and it arrives weeks after the network gave its leadership award to a wildfire recovery program serving communities that include Altadena.

Friday’s program is part of the network’s 16th annual suicide prevention summit, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health.

Scheduled presenters include Juan Diego Sanabria of CONTRA-TIEMPO, Christal Sarah Mims and Jafar Woods of Project KnuckleHead. CONTRA-TIEMPO is a Los Angeles activist dance theater company founded in 2005 by Ana Maria Alvarez. Project KnuckleHead, founded in 2012, is a national nonprofit that describes its work as serving youth in the justice system, youth with mental health needs and youth experiencing homelessness.

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

In Altadena Ceremony, Newsom Signs Wildfire Smoke Cleanup, Mortgage Relief Laws

New laws require insurers to pay for lead and asbestos testing in smoke-damaged homes and extend forbearance for disaster-hit borrowers

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed a package of bills in Altadena to expand mortgage protections, strengthen insurance coverage, improve testing and remediation standards, and create a permanent framework to accelerate wildfire recovery in light of last year’s Eaton and Palisades fires. 

The four new laws create standards for testing and remediating hazardous wildfire smoke contamination for future fires and require insurers to cover qualifying smoke-damage testing, remediation and restoration. The bills also permanently extend mortgage forbearance protections for disaster-affected homeowners. 

The governor signed the bills at a meeting with fire survivors, advocates, community leaders and the bill authors. The legislation was developed and drafted with considerable input from these communities, according to the governor’s office. 

“California will not leave survivors to navigate recovery alone,” Newsom said in a statement. “In the wake of the 2025 firestorms, we are continuing to listen,

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Barger’s Office Announces Measure ER Oversight Appointee as Pasadena Seeks Review of Its Share

Pasadena and Long Beach, the county’s only cities with their own health departments, have asked supervisors to review their 1% share of the half-cent health tax

Los Angeles County supervisors approved Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s appointment of Marlee Lauffer to the Measure ER oversight committee Sept. 15, her office said in a news release, as Pasadena seeks a review of its share of the tax.

The nine-member Citizens’ Oversight Advisory Committee will review revenue and spending from the voter-approved half-cent sales tax, evaluate the county’s annual independent audit and report publicly, according to Barger’s office. It will make recommendations before supervisors adopt a spending plan next spring for fiscal year 2027-28.

The Board of Supervisors approved the appointment unanimously, Barger’s office said.

Pasadena has a direct stake in how the money is divided. In a July 20 letter to the Board, Mayor Victor Gordo asked supervisors to review the 1% combined share of Measure ER revenue set aside for the Pasadena Public Health Department and Long Beach’s health department.