City Council to Consider Measures and Funding Addressing “Extraordinary Need” Caused by Winter Storms

Mayor Victor Gordo said Saturday night that Wednesday’s Special City Council Meeting will take up the severe weather Pasadena is experiencing and funding for measures to address the “extraordinary level of need we are seeing.”

“Pasadena has traditionally provided enhanced assistance to individuals experiencing homelessness during inclement weather but as we open 2023, we are experiencing exceptionally severe weather,” Gordo said.  

The Mayor said that Wednesday’s 3:30 p.m. Special Meeting agenda — the regular Monday meeting was canceled due to the Martin Luther King Day holiday  —  will consist of two items. 

“The first item will address the severe weather we are experiencing and give the City Council the flexibility to allocate additional funding for cold weather motel vouchers as well as authorize the City Manager to provide, as necessary, additional funds,” he said.

In recent years, the City has relied upon its motel voucher program as a readily available option for homeless residents to be sheltered during very cold weather.

Funding for motel vouchers is based on the number of clients who sought vouchers in prior years from one of the City’s three partners: Friends In Deed, Union Station and the Pasadena Public Health Department. 

Gordo also referred to information in a Pasadena Now story that Friends In Deed Executive Director Rabbi Joshua Grater said he could not house all those who asked for shelter because he needed to ration his funds to last the entire cold weather season.

“In the meantime, the City Manager has assured me that Friends In Deed has been informed that they do not need to ration their funding so it is available later in the season, since additional funding will be available in light of the severe weather we have already experienced this season,” Gordo said.

Pasadena has been in the crosshairs of a series of storms driven by atmospheric rivers which dumped much of California with 400% to 600% above-average rainfall since early December.

“On behalf of my City Council colleagues,” Gordo said, “I want to express my appreciation for the ongoing commitment of our dedicated staff and our community partners for the care they provide to unhoused residents during severe weather events.”