Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Guest Opinion | Dr. Elizabeth Pomeroy: A Vision for PUSD

As I  consider the reconfiguring and possible closing of  PUSD schools, some concerns come to mind.  If education is learning to ask the right questions, let’s take that approach to these tough decisions.

I am writing from the experience of 13 years on the PUSD Board of Education, during which time we voted to close 6 elementary schools and one middle school.  Not long before I joined the Board, 4 other elementary schools were closed.  These closings are part of the District’s history and must be considered in future planning.  So, to the questions:

What became of the vacant campuses after students were gone?   Of the 10 elementaries, 4 became charter schools, one was leased to a private school, 3 had combined charter and PUSD uses, one was leased to the City of Pasadena, and one is being planned for PUSD staff housing.  The middle school combines charter and PUSD uses.

Does closing campuses save PUSD money?  The District’s consultants in this matter estimate that closing a campus saves about $500,000 per year.  

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Frozen Creator and Pasadena-Trained Illustrator Bring New Graphic Novel to Vroman’s

Jennifer Lee and LeUyen Pham discuss and sign As I Dream of You tonight, joined by Eisner-winning collaborator Gene Luen Yang

LeUyen Pham arrived in Pasadena decades ago as a young art student from Southern California, a scholarship winner at Art Center College of Design with 140 published books still ahead of her. Tonight she returns to the city where her career began — this time alongside the woman who wrote Frozen.

Pham and Jennifer Lee, the Academy Award-winning writer and director of Disney’s Frozen and Frozen 2, will discuss and sign their new young adult graphic novel, As I Dream of You, at Vroman’s Bookstore at 7 p.m. The conversation will be moderated by Gene Luen Yang, the MacArthur Fellow and National Book Award finalist who previously collaborated with Pham on the three-time Eisner Award-winning Lunar New Year Love Story.

The book, published May 5 by First Second Books,

Monday, May 11, 2026

Registrar Urges Displaced Fire Survivors to Update Their Voter Registration With a Temporary Mailing Address by May 18

County registrar urges Eaton Fire voters still in temporary housing to update their registration by May 18 or risk missing the June primary

Vote-by-mail ballots for the June 2 California primary began arriving in Pasadena and Altadena mailboxes last week after the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office started mailing them on April 30, according to an announcement from the office of Registrar Dean C. Logan. Every registered voter in the county receives one. But the county does not forward ballots. They go to the address on file — and for displaced residents whose registered address is a lot scraped to bare soil, the ballot could have nowhere to land.

The Registrar’s office is urging fire survivors to update their voter registration with a temporary mailing address by May 18, the last day to register and receive a ballot by mail. Voters who miss the deadline can still cast ballots in person at Vote Centers, which open May 23, or use same-day registration through Election Day.

Monday, May 11, 2026

County Supervisors Agenda Includes Eaton Fire Recovery Actions, Affordable Housing Projects Near Pasadena Area

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday is scheduled to consider several Eaton Fire recovery-related measures, affordable housing projects in nearby unincorporated communities and a proposed crackdown on illegal street takeovers, according to the Board agenda posted May 6.

The meeting is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, May 12, in Board Hearing Room 381B at the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration, 500 W. Temple St., Los Angeles.

Several agenda items focus on continuing recovery operations tied to the January 2025 Windstorm and Critical Eaton Fire Events.

One item would continue emergency authority allowing county officials to bypass standard competitive bidding requirements for certain emergency contracts related to cleanup, reconstruction and infrastructure recovery associated with the fires.

A separate Public Works Department item would similarly continue emergency contracting authority for repair and replacement of public facilities damaged during the fires.

The agenda also includes a scheduled report from the county’s Chief Sustainability Officer regarding the Blue Ribbon Commission on Climate Action and Fire-Safe Recovery,

Monday, May 11, 2026

School Board Member Says Community Engagement Will Take Place on Eliot Tower

By ANDRÈ COLEMAN, Managing Editor

[UPDATED] A school board member told Pasadena Now that additional assessments of the Eliot tower will be conducted and the community will have its say on the matter before a final decision is made.

“The evaluations so far by DSA (Division of the State Architect) and structural engineers have determined that the tower is not stable or safe,” said Board Member Jennifer Hall Lee. “Additional assessments of the tower will be conducted. There will be full engagement of the community before any actions are taken. As an Altadenan I understand the devastation of our community and that Eliot is Altadena’s iconic building.”

According to media reports, Altadena Town Council Vice Chair Milissa Marona said Blanco told a land use committee the school district had consulted insurance and engineering firms and believed the tower could not safely remain.

According to those reports, Marona said future plans did not include Building A or the tower,

Monday, May 11, 2026

Guest Opinion | John Lira: PUSD needs a Holistic Progressive Vision for the Integrated, Fully-Staffed Model Schools of Tomorrow

John Lira is a 25-year veteran PUSD educator and sits on the board of the United Teachers of Pasadena

PUSD was recently gifted almost 1.5 billion tax dollars in bond measure money, Measure O (516M) in 2020, and Measure R (900M) in 2024.  The District gets almost 12 million annually from the passage of Measures I and J and an additional 5 million from Parcel Tax Measure EE, along with more money for the diverse population it serves, which means PUSD receives more money per pupil than all the districts that surround it.  With all this gifted tax and bond money, it must reimagine what PUSD will look like in 5, 10, or more years from now.  PUSD should use its unprecedented bond funding and local revenue not merely to manage decline, but to redesign the district around integrated, stable, fully staffed schools that provide equitable access and comprehensive educational opportunities.  It is time to prepare for a progressive vision for the integrated, fully-staffed model schools of tomorrow.

Monday, May 11, 2026

LA County Gas Prices Decline Slightly

CITY NEWS SERVICE

The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County declined one-tenth of a cent Sunday to $6.231, its third consecutive slight decrease after a 15-day streak of increases that saw it rise 32.4 cents.

The average price is 5.4 cents more than one week ago, 21.6 cents more than one month ago and $1.442 more than one year ago, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It has risen $1.537 since the joint U.S./Israel attack on Iran on Feb. 28, moving within 26.3 cents of the record $6.494 set Oct. 5, 2022.

The national average price dropped eight-tenths of a cent to $4.522. The national average price has decreased three straight days following a 16-day streak of increases that saw it rise 54.8 cents to its highest amount since July 16, 2022. It is 7.6 cents more than one week ago, 36.9 cents more than one month ago and $1.383 more than one year ago.

Sunday, May 10, 2026

Edison Tops $500 Million in Eaton Fire Offers as Altadena Undergrounding Draws Pushback

The utility’s voluntary compensation program approaches a November deadline while residents challenge the cost and pace of burying power lines

Sixteen months after the Eaton Fire leveled more than 9,000 structures across Altadena, Southern California Edison says it has crossed a threshold: more than $500 million offered to fire survivors through its voluntary compensation program, with more than 68% of those offers accepted.

The figure, disclosed in a May 7 progress report on Edison’s corporate platform, marks six months since the Wildfire Recovery Compensation Program began accepting claims for property loss, smoke damage, and other fire-related harm. The program operates as an alternative to litigation at a time when SCE faces lawsuits from Los Angeles County, the cities of Pasadena and Sierra Madre, and the U.S. Department of Justice, all alleging the utility’s equipment contributed to the fire that killed at least 17 people on January 7, 2025. SCE has acknowledged the possibility that its infrastructure was involved; the cause remains under investigation.

Sunday, May 10, 2026

Altadena Order of the Phoenix Holds May Meeting at La Cañada Presbyterian

The peer support group for Eaton Fire survivors gathers for its monthly dinner meeting Tuesday evening, with RSVP requested

Sixteen months after the Eaton Fire reduced thousands of Altadena homes to rubble, a peer support network born out of a neighborhood dog-walking circle continues to draw scores of fire survivors to a single table once a month. The Altadena Order of the Phoenix — named for the mythical bird reborn from its ashes — meets Tuesday evening at La Cañada Presbyterian Church for its monthly dinner gathering.

Cofounded by Altadena residents Michele Judd and Chelsea Cartwright, both of whom lost their homes in the January 9, 2025 fire, the group rebranded after its earliest gatherings expanded beyond walking neighbors into something closer to a mutual aid society. About 100 residents now attend monthly meetings, traveling from Studio City, Simi Valley, North Hollywood, and beyond, according to LAist’s reporting on an earlier session.

“This is the type of community we cannot let go of,”

Saturday, May 9, 2026

Altadena Mothers Demand Immediate Cash Relief From Edison as Litigation, Recovery Efforts Continue

By EDDIE RIVERA

Mothers and community advocates criticize utility compensation program as too restrictive ahead of Mother’s Day weekend

Altadena mothers displaced by the Eaton Fire, backed by other survivors and community advocates, gathered Friday outside a Southern California Edison facility to demand immediate financial assistance and accuse the utility of failing to adequately support families struggling to rebuild.

The demonstration, organized by Dena Rise Up and Mothers of Altadena, took place outside Edison’s Altadena office and substation on Fair Oaks Avenue ahead of Mother’s Day weekend.

Protesters called on Southern California Edison and its parent company Edison International to provide $200,000 housing relief advances to displaced households while litigation and insurance disputes tied to the January fire continue moving through the courts.

Hundreds of lawsuits against Southern California Edison remain pending. Edison has not admitted liability. The cause of the fire officially remains under investigation.

“We have two demands of Edison,” organizer Florence Annang told the crowd.