Councilmember Steve Madison, City Officials Describe Optimistic Downtown Pasadena Future

Focusing on what one attendee called the “blood and guts of the city,” District 6 Councilmember Steve Madison addressed a small but attentive group of local residents at his Thursday evening Town Hall meeting at the Pasadena Conference Center, on the subject of “Economic Vitality, Public Safety and Smart Growth.”

The evening featured concise, informative presentations from City Manager Steve Mermell; Planning Director David Reyes, Business Development Administrator Eric Duyshart; Lt. Mark Goodman of the Pasadena Police Department’s HOPE Team, and Will Rivera, Chief Assistant City Prosecutor.

Madison began the evening by acknowledging the recent loss of Pasadena resident John Van De Kamp, who served as Los Angeles County District Attorney from 1975 until 1981, and then as the 28th Attorney General of California from 1983 until 1991. Madison told the group that he had introduced the idea of re-naming the soon to be re-opened La Loma Bridge to the John Van de Kamp Bridge, saying that the idea was “well-received by the council.”

Madison then outlined the upcoming summer lineup at the Rose Bowl, highlighting the new “Arroyo Seco Weekend” Music festival in late June, along with upcoming concerts from U2, ColdPlay, Green Day and Metallica.

“It’s a full summer of events,” he said.

Madison noted that the stadium needed to draw as much revenue as possible before the openings of the renovated LA Coliseum and the new Rams stadium in Inglewood.

Giving a brief overview of the city’s economy and budget, Mermell noted that the city was headed toward a loss of revenue in the coming fiscal year, but that his latest budget would not necessitate drawing any funds from the City’s reserve account. Mermell noted that, like many cities, police and fire services are the City’s largest expenditure with $71 million spent on police and $44 million spent on the fire department.

Planning Director Reyes then delivered a brief primer on the City’s development, noting that all planning is dictated by the City’s General Plan, which is currently in the process of being updated, along with the City’s six specific plans for various neighborhoods.

Reyes also noted that the City’s growth rate is currently at .56%, which he described as “essentially flat.” He also noted the revenue potential of the upcoming “Arroyo Seco Weekend” festival, which will be first festival of a five-year contract with the promoter, Goldenvoice.

Duyshart gave an optimistic overview of the City’s six various commercial corridors, from Old Pasadena to Lake Avenue to the Playhouse District, noting that his office tracks each one of the areas, in order to provide information to both city officials and investors. He also reported that the City’s current vacancy rate of approximately 3.4% is on par with most major cities. While he noted that many Southern California cities have yet to fully recover from the 2009 recession, except Santa Monica, Pasadena has experienced “an uptick that has exceeded pre-recession levels.”

Meanwhile, echoing a sentiment that Police Chief Phillip Sanchez has expressed more than once, Pasadena Police Lieutenant Mark Goodman told the meeting, “If we could have arrested our way out of homelessness, we would have done that a long time ago.” Goodman talked about his work with the Pasadena Police HOPE team which acts as first responders to mental health emergencies involving the homeless, pairing an officer with a mental health professional on a regular beat. Currently the PPD has three active HOPE teams, said Goodman, where most Southern California cities have none.

Madison gave an update on the 710 tunnel project, explaining to the group that Assembly member Chris Holden recently introduced state legislation that would prohibit the tunnel’s construction.

Madison, who called the 70 year-old issue “one of the most unique public policy cases in America,” said that he hoped that the proposed legislation could “drive a wooden stake through the heart of the project once and for all.”