Monday, May 18, 2026

Pasadena Hosts Fifth Annual Older Americans Month Celebration at Victory Park

Wednesday’s free morning gathering brings more than 50 exhibitors and the 2026 “Champion Your Health” theme to a single Pasadena lawn

The city’s annual celebration of Older Americans Month settles into Victory Park on Wednesday morning, drawing more than 50 exhibitors and a slate of remarks from public officials for a free three-hour resource fair tailored to Pasadena’s older adult population. The event, hosted jointly by the Pasadena Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department, the Senior Commission and the nonprofit Pasadena Village, runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 20.

Attendees can expect free health screenings, educational presentations, giveaways, food, entertainment and direct access to local aging services, all anchored to this year’s national theme, “Champion Your Health,” which spotlights prevention, wellness and self-advocacy. The morning opens with remarks from public officials before the exhibitor row gets busy.

“Our community is fortunate to have an extensive network of support, from health care and older adult programming to cultural and recreational opportunities,”

Sunday, May 17, 2026

California Voter Registration Deadline for June 2 Primary Is Monday

Pasadena and Altadena residents have until May 18 to register through the standard process to receive a mail ballot; conditional same-day registration remains available through Election Day

Monday, May 18, is the last day Pasadena and Altadena residents can register through California’s standard online or postmark process to be automatically mailed a ballot for the June 2 statewide direct primary, according to the California Secretary of State’s office and the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.

Eligible residents who miss the deadline can still take part by using Same Day, or conditional, voter registration at any Los Angeles County vote center or the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office through Election Day, the Secretary of State’s office said.

Voters who use that option must do so in person and cast a provisional ballot. The local stakes for Pasadena voters include a Primary Nominating Election for City Council in Districts 3, 5 and 7, along with the race for California governor and a countywide half-cent sales tax measure.

Saturday, May 16, 2026

UTP President Says Teachers Union Has Not Taken Formal Position on Allegations Against School Board

Jonathan Gardner tells Pasadena Now the union does not anticipate joining calls for trustee resignations, characterizes recall demands as “political grandstanding,” and says unfulfilled fall budget promises are a greater concern

United Teachers of Pasadena President Jonathan Gardner said in a telephone interview Friday that the union has not taken a formal position on allegations of misconduct against four Pasadena Unified School District trustees, is not initiating action against the Board of Education at this time, and does not anticipate joining any litigation which may be brought by other parties.

Gardner characterized public calls for trustee resignations and recalls as “political grandstanding.”  He said the District’s failure to follow through on fall budget commitments is, in his view, “a much bigger violation of the public trust” than the matters publicly raised in connection with the open-meeting allegations.

Gardner spoke to Pasadena Now the day after a May 14 special meeting at which Sierra Madre Mayor Kristine “Kris” Lowe and eight other in-person commenters demanded the resignation of Board President Tina Fredericks and three fellow trustees,

Saturday, May 16, 2026

Altadena Group Becomes Sponsor of Harabedian’s Wildfire Contamination Testing Bill

The Wildfire Environmental Safety and Testing Act faces its first Assembly committee hearing March 10

An Altadena grassroots group formed after last year’s Eaton Fire has signed on as the official sponsor of state legislation that would set California’s first statewide standards for testing and cleaning fire-contaminated homes, Assemblymember John Harabedian announced Tuesday.

Harabedian (D-Pasadena), who introduced Assembly Bill 1642 in January, said Eaton Fire Residents United joined the bill as sponsor one week before its first committee hearing. The measure, titled the Wildfire Environmental Safety and Testing Act, is scheduled to be heard March 10 in the Assembly Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials.

If enacted, AB 1642 would require the California Department of Toxic Substances Control to adopt emergency regulations by July 1, 2027 specifying how contaminants should be investigated, tested for and removed inside and outside homes, schools and workplaces in residential areas after a wildfire, according to the bill’s text. The regulations would include health-based clearance standards for residents returning to reoccupy their homes.

Saturday, May 16, 2026

Senator Pérez Welcomes Fire Aid and Teacher Leave in State Budget, but Flags Gaps in College Support

Pérez, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, praises pregnancy leave for teachers and per-pupil spending while saying more wildfire aid is needed

State Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Pasadena), Chair of the Senate Education Committee, on Friday welcomed a proposed $100 million state investment in mortgage and rebuilding assistance for Los Angeles County wildfire survivors and a new requirement that California provide 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave for TK-12 and community college teachers, both included in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May Revision to the 2026-2027 state budget.

Pérez, who represents Pasadena, Altadena, and 19 other communities in the 25th Senate District, issued the statement one day after Newsom released the revised budget proposal Thursday. She praised what she described as record per-pupil education spending and the state’s largest special education investment, but said the revised proposal does not include restoration of the Middle Class Scholarship program. The Legislature faces a June 15 constitutional deadline to pass a balanced budget.

The May Revision proposes a $100 million disaster rebuilding fund aimed at helping wildfire survivors secure construction financing through loan-loss guarantees,

Saturday, May 16, 2026

PUSD to Conduct Full Environmental Review Before Deciding Fate of Fire-Damaged Eliot Tower

Pasadena Unified School District will conduct a full Environmental Impact Report and treat the fire-damaged Eliot tower as a historic resource under California law before deciding whether to demolish the Altadena landmark, Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco announced in an email to the district community on Friday, May 15.

The commitment left open the possibility that the tower, deemed unsafe by structural engineers after the Eaton Fire, could be preserved or adaptively reused rather than torn down.

In the letter to the PUSD community,  Blanco addressed the community directly, acknowledging the grief surrounding the tower’s uncertain future and describing the structure as a symbol of identity, belonging, and resilience for students, families, alumni, staff, and neighbors who have watched the tower rise above the neighborhood for generations

Blanco said the District will complete a full review under the California Environmental Quality Act, known as CEQA, before any redevelopment planning occurs or decisions are made for the campus. She described the Environmental Impact Report, or EIR, as the most comprehensive level of environmental review available under California law and said it will take many months to complete.

Friday, May 15, 2026

State Report Finds Deputies Justified in Fatal Altadena Shooting

CITY NEWS SERVICE

California Attorney General Rob Bonta Friday released a report concluding that criminal charges were not warranted against Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies involved in a 2023 fatal shooting in Altadena.

The report, issued under Assembly Bill 1506, examined the Jan. 22, 2023, shooting in which deputies opened fire after Charles Towns, 47, of Pasadena allegedly attacked several people while armed with a knife or scissors near Fair Oaks Avenue and Woodbury Road.

According to the California Department of Justice, deputies responded to multiple 911 calls reporting that Towns was moving through Altadena streets attempting to stab people.

Authorities said Towns fled from deputies and approached a family exiting a vehicle, stabbing one person in the mouth before deputies fired.

The report said deputies fired again when Towns continued moving toward them after being struck. He died at the scene.

After reviewing the evidence, the Department of Justice concluded prosecutors could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the deputies acted unlawfully or without a reasonable belief that deadly force was necessary to protect themselves or others from imminent death or serious bodily injury.

Friday, May 15, 2026

Pasadena Foundation Steers Nearly $600,000 to Nonprofits Rebuilding Their Capacity After the Fire

Capital grants fund freezers, fleet vans, tech upgrades, and a fifth family shelter across 29 organizations still absorbing Eaton Fire demand

Sixteen months after the Eaton Fire, the nonprofits that fed displaced families, sheltered the homeless, and connected survivors to resources are still at it. Now the Pasadena Community Foundation is putting money into what keeps them going: the buildings, the equipment, and the infrastructure behind the services.

PCF announced this week that it has awarded nearly $600,000 in capital grants to 29 Pasadena-area organizations — funding directed not at programs or staff but at the physical plant. A new food pantry freezer for Friends In Deed. A replacement van for Five Acres to transport youth and families across its programs. Technology upgrades at Stars to support its Wellness Center and Eaton Fire Collaborative Office. Safety and security upgrades at Huhuunga, the Altadena site of deep cultural significance to the Tongva people. The grants, PCF’s largest annual investment, land in a community where nonprofits have been running hard since January 2025.

Friday, May 15, 2026

Odyssey Charter Schools Hosts Run-for-Fun Fundraisers at Both Altadena Campuses

A year after OCS South reopened on West Altadena Drive, the annual tradition brings students and families together one block apart

For the first time since the Eaton Fire scattered its students across borrowed classrooms in Pasadena, Odyssey Charter Schools will hold its annual Run-for-Fun fundraiser with both campuses operating from permanent homes on the same Altadena block.

The school is hosting simultaneous events Friday at its two West Altadena Drive campuses: “Stronger Together: Run For Fun 2026″ at Odyssey Charter School, and “Bounce to the Future,” an obstacle course, at OCS South. Both events run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and are open to students, families and community supporters, according to the school.

The two campuses sit roughly one block apart — Odyssey Charter at 725 W. Altadena Drive and OCS South at 575 W. Altadena Drive. That proximity is new. The Eaton Fire destroyed OCS South’s original campus at 119 W. Palm Street on January 7-8, 2025, displacing 375 students and gutting four and a half buildings on the site.

Friday, May 15, 2026

Altadena’s Little League Refused To Fold After the Fire. A New Film Shows What Happened Next.

The kids had no field. Most had no gear. Their families were scattered across Los Angeles County, living in temporary rentals and relatives’ spare rooms. But when Central Altadena Little League announced it would hold its 2025 season anyway — just weeks after the Eaton Fire destroyed Farnsworth Park and more than 9,000 structures across Altadena — hundreds of children signed up.

What happened over the next nine months is the subject of “Going for Home,” an 82-minute documentary by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Eric Simonson that will screen free at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Loma Alta Park in Altadena.

The film follows the league through a season played in the shadow of the fire, capturing both the on-field action and the off-field struggles of families navigating displacement, insurance battles and soil contamination scares that nearly shut the season down.

The season was made possible in part by West Pasadena Little League, which opened its fields so Central Altadena’s nearly 20 teams could practice and play.