Monday Morning Bullpen: Budget Talks Continue

The City Council returns on Monday after a special meeting on the Rose Bowl budget and closed session meetings related to the City Manager search.

It seems like it’s been a long time since we’ve had one of these and tonight our elected officials get back to the city’s business.

The big ticket item here is the budget.

The recommended $955.3 budget also includes the appropriations for the FY 2023-2027 Capital Improvement Program and the city’s three operating companies.

The city’s charter of Pasadena Charter, Section 902, requires that on or before the third Monday in May the City Manager shall submit to the City Council an annual operating budget for the succeeding fiscal year.

That part has been done, now the City Council must make its decision on the budget after it closes the public hearing.

Hay has been made about the Rose Bowl and the police department budget. Look, the city may not contribute to the Rose Bowl during the budget process, but there is no way the city can ignore the fiscal condition of the iconic stadium.

Not sure what that solution looks like, but the city and the Rose Bowl Operating Company have to find one.

Anyone that understands city government and Pasadena, knows the city cannot stand by idly and watch the stadium fall deeper into debt.

As far as the police budget, the defund the police crowd has called for a smaller police budget.

But it’s a done deal, the council has to fund public safety.

Others somehow conflate the homeless problem with the police budget and call for money from the police budget to be used in the city’s fight to solve its homeless crisis.

Funding the police is not taking away from housing or preventing services to unhoused people.

Taking from one for the other would just be robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Pass the budget.

Mentioning police, the chair of the Police Oversight Commission is calling on the Public Safety Committee to recommend three community organization commissioners be re-appointed.

I have no problem with that as long as the new applications are considered and vetted by the PSC also, if there are any.