By the time we got to the Q&A session during our June 6 annual meeting, time had run out. As much as we would have liked to answer all of the questions then and there, many questions deserved more thoughtful and complete answers. The first batch of questions and answers is below. More to come.
Q: We should conduct a competition to officially give a new name to the area. We can’t keep calling it the “stub.” Winner gets a prize?
A: WPRA President Pete Ewing: Great idea! The WPRA Board will discuss it.
Q: Can we put the A Line Metro light-rail tracks under Green Street and Del Mar?
A: WPRA President Pete Ewing: Earlier plans to underground the light-rail tracks at only California were scrapped due to an exorbitant estimated cost. Instead, Metro allocated funds to enhance other modes of transportation in Pasadena. However, since these intersections are crucial for access to, for example, the hospital emergency room, it may be in everyone’s best interest to reconsider running the tracks under Green Street and through California Boulevard to improve traffic flow.
Q: The sale of non-profit homes by Caltrans is a major concern to those living in the Arlington Street area, east of Pasadena Avenue. Specifically, the Cottage Nursery (40 students) has disrupted the peaceful enjoyment of residences with traffic, noise and parking congestion. It is too large of an operation to be surrounded by single-family homes. Can something be done?
A: WPRA Vice President Rick Madden: We suggest you first raise these issues with the Cottage Nursery’s administration. If the school is unwilling to help, contact Council District 6 Liaison Justin Chapman by email at jchapman@cityofpasadena.net, or call (626) 744-4739; or contact the City’s Planning and Community Development department at (626) 744-8633.
Q: Will the WPRA advocate for bringing back the sidewalk on the east side of Pasadena Avenue from Bellefontaine to Columbia?
A: WPRA Vice President Rick Madden: Yes, the WPRA is advocating for the return of Pasadena Avenue to a normal residential street with sidewalks and with scale and traffic appropriate for this use. As noted in our annual meeting, a return to a fine-grain block structure would allow current traffic to be dispersed among several streets. This should reduce the burden of traffic that any particular street has to bear.
Q: Why is the City reluctant to eliminate the homeless encampment along Columbia Place and Fair Oaks Avenue? All it needs is fence reinforcement to prevent access.
A: Pasadena Police Department Sgt. Jacob Carey and WPRA Board member Carlos Javelera: The homeless encampment under the bridge at Fair Oaks Avenue and Columbia Place has plagued residents of Pasadena for over 10 years. These large homeless encampments produce excessive amounts of trash and human waste. Every time the Police Department removes subjects and trash (at a high City cost), the service-resistant individuals are back within a week or even days. A chain-link fence that had been erected there has been cut each and every time after being repaired by Public Works. It was only recently that the chain-link fence on the east side of Fair Oaks Avenue (near the Raymond Restaurant) was replaced by a sturdy fence, which has yet to be breached. But we need your help to find a permanent solution to this problem. The Police Department will be conducting walk-throughs of the location. During those walk-throughs the Police will discuss crime statistics and identify what each of us can do to help resolve this problem. If you’d like to join a walk-through, leave a message at cityofpasadena.net/police/contact.
Q: What’s being done to implement fiber optic signal cable in Pasadena for the internet? We are stuck with outdated coaxial cable from Charter Spectrum; it’s very slow.
A: WPRA President Pete Ewing: The WPRA has not yet taken this subject on; however, we will discuss it during our July 10 Board meeting.