2016-06-27 District 3 Newsletter

June 2016
DISTRICT 3 NEWS
Councilmember John J. Kennedy
Message from the
Councilmember
Dear District 3 Residents,
Business Leaders and
Friends,
I hope you and your family
are off to a wonderful
summer season. It appears
that this summer will be
unseasonably hot, so please
be sure to drink plenty of
water and stay sufficiently
hydrated.
My team and I are hard at
work ensuring that all who
make up the extraordinary
and brilliant mix of people
and interests in District 3
receive their fair share of
City resources and services
as we remain committed to
building a better, more
inclusive and vibrant city.
BUILDING ONE
PASADENA!
My team is your team, made
up of a growing cadre of
talented volunteers, business
leaders, young people,
educators, seniors and most
importantly, District 3
residents. (cont. pg. 6 of 8)
Body Worn Camera Program
At the June 13 City Council meeting, the Council voted to
authorize Interim City Manager Steve Mermell to enter
into a five-year contract with Taser International, Inc., to
furnish and deliver software, hardware and services for a
Body Worn Camera System for the Pasadena Police
Department. The amount of the contract is $1,532,238 to
be spent over five years which will purchase 320 cameras. In
addition to the purchase of cameras, the Pasadena Police
Department will add two new full-time employees to
maintain the system. Once the contract is executed, it will
take approximately four months before the cameras will be
ready for use.
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June 2016
Search for New City Manager
On June 17 the City Council began the interview process to find a
new City Manager. Former Assistant City Manager Steve
Mermell has been acting as the Interim City Manager since
Michael Beck’s departure from the City in February. It is the
Council’s intention to narrow down a group of finalists after this
first-round of interviews and make the final selection in early July.
NEWS/EVENTS:
Pasadena Humane Society
& SPA 3rd Annual “Free
Adoption
Day”
on
Thursday, June 23 from
9:00 am to 5:00 pm, 361 S.
Raymond Ave.
Follow-Up to Q&A from the February District 3
Community Meeting
In response to an increase in gun violence earlier this year, the
District 3 Community Meeting on February 17 was dedicated to
addressing community concerns. At the time of the meeting
residents submitted questions to be answered in detail at a later
date, the answers to those questions can be found at this link:
http://www.cityofpasadena.net/Police/CommunityQA/
Little Free Library Program
Free Efficient Irrigation
Workshop hosted by PWP
on Saturday, June 25 at the
Salvation Army Tabernacle,
960 E. Walnut St.
g
Levitt Pavilion Pasadena
Opening Day Concert on
Sunday, June 26 at 8:00pm
at Memorial Park
The Little Free Library Program started in 2009 with the mission
“To promote literacy and the love of reading by building free
book exchanges worldwide and to build a sense of community as
we share skills, creativity and wisdom across generations.” We are
about to begin construction of seven such libraries to place
around District 3. If you are interested in helping to construct
one of the libraries, or would like to place one at your home,
please contact my office (626) 744-4738, and one of my District
Liaisons, Susana Porras or Jana West, will provide you with the
necessary details.
Message From Pasadena Water & Power
Public Safety Committee
Meeting Special Meeting on
Monday, June 27 from 4:00
pm to 5:30 pm in the
Council Chambers
r
FY 2017 Operating Budget
Adoption Meeting on June
27 at 7:00 pm in the Council
Chambers
Color
This summer it is possible that PWP customers will experience
rolling blackouts caused by natural gas curtailments from
SoCalGas. Pasadena relies on natural gas to help generate local
power supply, but PWP is taking every step to avoid interruption
of service, including exploring alternate power sources to address
the potential shortage of natural gas. For ways to reduce energy
use, tips to help you prepare should a rolling blackout occur or to
sign up for the Outage Management System to receive an alert
when power outages occur, click on the following link:
http://www.cityofpasadena.net/waterandpower/rollingblackouts/
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June 2016
To view City Council Agendas, click on the following link:
http://ww2.cityofpasadena.net/councilagendas/council_agenda.asp
To view the City Manager’s Weekly Newsletter, click on the following link:
http://cityofpasadena.net/CityManager/CM_Newsletters/
To view the latest edition of In Focus, click on the following link:
http://cityofpasadena.net/PublicAffairs/Pasadena_In_Focus_PDF/
To view the FY 2016 Adopted Capital Improvement Budget, click on the following link:
http://cityofpasadena.net/PublicWorks/Capital_Improvement_Program/
For the latest Northwest Commission Newsletter, click on the following link:
http://ww5.cityofpasadena.net/northwest/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2016/03/Northwest- JanuaryFebruary-2016-Newsletter.pdf
To join the District 3 Mailing List, click on the following link:
http://cityofpasadena.net/District3/
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June 2016
YOUR COUNCILMEMBER AT WORK:
April 2016
4/2 — Brought greetings on behalf of the City at the 2016
Conference on Health Aging sponsored by the Pasadena
Senior Center
4/16 — Spoke at the STEMposium at Pasadena City College
News/Events Cont.
Colorado Street Bridge Party
Saturday, July 16 from 6:00
pm to 11:30 pm
May 2016
5/5 — Attended 43rd Annual Mayor’s Interfaith Prayer
Breakfast
5/6 — Tour of District 3 with businessperson interested in
starting business in the District
5/8 — Guest of US Ambassador to Argentina at meeting with
business leaders and educators seeking to do business in
Pasadena and other cities in California
5/10 — Arranged meeting for Fire Chief Bertral Washington to
meet with potential local firefighter recruits
5/10 — Joined Boualem Bousseloub, chair of the Sister City
Committee on Africa in meeting with the Consul General of
South Africa to discuss establishing a new Sister City
relationship
5/10 — Meeting with owners of Community Arms, City
Manager, Police Chief and Director of Housing and staff to
discuss safety concerns and programs
5/12 — Monthly meeting with Interim City Manager to discuss
District concerns and issues
5/15 — Event with Congresswoman Judy Chu
5/17 — Meeting with former Finance Minister for the Republic
of Senegal to discuss education collaboration with Pasadena
5/24 — Met with Playhouse District business leaders about a
number of projects - ongoing vitality of the district
5/25 — District 3 Community Meeting at Robinson Park safety, housing and Robinson Park updates
June 2016
6/3 — Meeting with visionary David Wolfe about his planning
document for the City of Pasadena
6/4 — Diversity in the Arts Town Hall at the Armory
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June 2016
YOUR COUNCILMEMBER AT WORK CONT.
6/4 — Attended Repair Cafe at Villa Parke
6/5 — Attended Gamma Zeta Boule Scholarship Luncheon at the University Club
6/7 — Interviewed for District Liaison position
6/8 — Meeting about YWCA Julia Ann Morgan Building - Kimpton Hotel
6/9 — Attended the Commission on the Status of Women Survival Guide launch event at City Hall
6/11 — Participated in and spoke at Garfield Heights Neighborhood Association Block Party
6/15 — Met with constituent to discuss multi-family development in District 3
6/15 — Met with representative from the fire union to discuss various important issues
6/17 — Participated in all-day interviews for selection of City Manager
6/18 — Attended Juneteenth Celebration at Jackie Robinson Center
6/18 — Presented community award at Men Educating Men About Health event at the Art Center of
Design
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June 2016
Message from the Councilmember Cont.
We are fortunate to enjoy such a rich and representative District. I am pleased to announce that
after a comprehensive search involving 134 applicants, we have a new part-time addition to our
team. Please welcome long-time District 3 resident Susana Porras as my newest District 3
Liaison. Susana is a graduate of Cal State LA. She holds two BA degrees in Sociology and French
and a Masters degree in Sociology. Additionally, she is fluent in Spanish and French. She joins
longtime and dedicated District Liaison Jana West. Jana and Susana are committed to providing
the best service possible to all District 3 residents. Please welcome Susana to our team!
As a member of the City Council’s Financial Audit Committee, we are in the midst of reviewing
operational budgets for all departments. Resources are extremely tight and some economists are
predicting additional slowing of our economy. However, the Council is making tremendous
investments in public safety with Body Worn Cameras and pay raises for police officers.
Additional resources are forthcoming to our police department to provide ever improving tools
for policing in the 21st century.
The first phase of the Robinson Park development is fully funded, all $11 million dollars. Kudos
to Mayor Tornek and my other colleagues on the Council, City staff and the volunteer steering
Committee headed by Danny Parker in their collective leadership on this project. Heritage
Square Senior Housing Project is due to open its doors in a manner of weeks, certainly by the
Fall. This development will give the seniors who live there a beautiful facility in the heart of
District 3. We commend William Huang, Director of Housing, and all of his staff for their smart
work on this project.
Rest assured, I will continue to be dogged on replacing and repairing sidewalks in District 3 and
throughout the City. To that end, the City has both internal and contracted teams now focused
on the work. Your goal is my goal: to see unsafe sidewalks repaired or replaced so that seniors,
children, families and residents will always be safe.
In a couple of weeks, we will celebrate July 4th, Independence Day. It is a time of reflection on
the founding values and principles of our great nation. So, I am encouraging residents and
neighbors to safely celebrate this important holiday with family and friends. Remember
fireworks are are not allowed in the City. However, the City will host the spectacular
“Americafest” at the Rose Bowl.
Again, have a wonderful summer Jana, Susana, our volunteer team, and I look forward to seeing
you soon!
Respectfully yours,
John J. Kennedy
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June 2016
Mensaje del Miembro del Consejo
Querido residente del distrito 3, dueños de negocios y amigos:
Espero que usted y su familia estén disfrutando del comienzo del tiempo de verano. Parece que
este verano va ser muy caliente, por favor asegúrese de tomar suficiente agua y mantenerse
hidratado.
Mi equipo y yo estamos trabajando duro para asegurarnos que el grupo de personas y
mezcla de intereses extraordinarias e increíbles que forman parte del Distrito 3 reciban su parte
de los recursos y servicios mientras que nos mantenemos dedicados a crear una ciudad mejor,
inclusiva y dinámica. CONSTRUYENDO UN SOLO PASADENA!
Mi equipo es su equipo, compuesto de un grupo talentoso de voluntarios, dueños de
negocios, jóvenes, maestros, personas mayores y más importante, residentes del distrito 3. Estoy
muy orgulloso de anunciar que después de una larga búsqueda de 134 solicitantes, tenemos una
nueva adición de medio tiempo en nuestro equipo. Le damos la bienvenida a Susana Porras,
residente del distrito 3 de muchos años, como mi más reciente representante. Ella tiene dos
títulos universitarios en Sociología y francés y una maestría en Sociología. Además habla español
y francés. Ella se une a Jana West, mi representante dedicada de muchos años. Jana y Susana
están dedicadas a proveerles el mejor servicio posible a todos los residentes del distrito 3. ¡Le
damos la bienvenida a Susana Porras a nuestro equipo!
Como miembro del comité de finanzas y reviso de contabilidad del consejo, estamos
revisando todos los presupuestos para todos los departamentos. Los recursos están sumamente
limitados y unos economistas pronostican que la economía continuará a caminar lentamente. Sin
embargo, el consejo está haciendo una gran inversión en la seguridad pública, cámaras corporales
y aumentos de salario para nuestros policías. Recursos adicionales serán disponibles para nuestro
departamento de policía para proveerles las herramientas policiacas del siglo 21.
La primera fase del Desarrollo del Parque Robinson de 11 millones de dólares está
completamente subvencionada. Gracias a nuestro Alcalde Tornek y mis otros colegas del consejo,
personal de la ciudad, el comité voluntario de vigilancia y Danny Parker, su líder por su trabajo
colectivo en este proyecto. El proyecto de vivienda para personas mayores de Heritage Square de
69 unidades estará completa en solamente unas semanas o definitivamente para el otoño. Este
desarrollo les dará a personas mayores que vivirán allí una residencia en el corazón del distrito 3.
Felicitamos a William Wong, Director de Viviendas, todo su equipo y trabajo excepcional en este
proyecto.
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June 2016
Asegúrense, que voy a continuar a trabajar para que las banquetas en el Distrito 3 y en la
ciudad sean reparadas. La ciudad ahora tiene equipos internos y contratados. Su meta es mí meta
de ver banquetas inseguras reparadas es mi meta: para que personas mayores, niños, familias y
residentes siempre estén seguros.
En un par de semanas celebraremos el 4 de julio, el Día de la Independencia. Es un día de reflejo
sobre nuestros valores y principios de nuestra gran nación. Animo a nuestros vecinos de celebrar
este día festivo con familia y amigos. Recuerden que los fuegos artificiales no son permitidos en
la ciudad. Sin embargo, la ciudad presentara “Americafest.” en el Rose Bowl. Aremos cada
esfuerzo de nuestra parte para tener boletos gratis disponibles para personas que no pueden
pagar la entrada.
De nuevo, que tengan un lindo verano y Jana Susana, nuestro equipo voluntario y yo esperamos
verlos pronto,
Respetuosamente,
John J. Kennedy
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