City Council Reorganization

City Manager Michael Beck presented the outgoing District 4 councilman with his very own Steve Haderlein Field, made with loving hands by Michael and his children.

Monday was a bittersweet evening, full of fond farewells and new beginnings as the Pasadena City Council reorganized.

Mayor Bill Bogaard and Vice Mayor Victor Gordo presented Steve with photos of District 4 shot by the very talented Brian Biery:


Jane Haderlein and their daughters offered touching testimonials about their great husband and father, and the impact of his dedicated public service on their lives.


The meeting was adjourned and civilian Steve Haderlein joined his family in the audience.


Next the mayor called the meeting to order again, and it was time for the swearing in of newly elected and re-elected officials by City Clerk Mark Jomsky. From left are District 6 Councilman Steve Madison, District 4 Councilman Gene Masuda, District 2 Councilwoman Margaret McAustin, District 1 Councilwoman Jacque Robinson and Mayor Bogaard.


Mayor Bogaard presented Victor Gordo with a commemorative clock in appreciation of his two years of service as vice mayor.


The final order of business was the election of a new vice mayor. Congratulations to Margaret McAustin, who will lead council meetings and perform other duties whenever Mayor Bogaard is not available.


Everyone posed for a photo before heading home. (Missing is District 7 Councilman Terry Tornek, who was not able to be there.)




Photos by the mighty Zack Stromberg of the Public Affairs Office.

Setting City Budget Priorities

With massive budget cuts at the state level, municipalities all over California are wrestling with the impacts on local government services and programs.

From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 8, the Pasadena City Council will try to sort out the realities of this issue during a special workshop.

They'll get input from City Manager Michael Beck and department directors, and the discussion will serve as the basis for setting City of Pasadena budget priorities for this fiscal year and into the future.

Public comment will take place at 8:30 a.m., so if you have some wisdom about this topic, that will be the opportunity for you to speak your peace. And, of course, you'll be welcome to stick around for all or part of the rest of the workshop.

The location is Room 211 at Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E. Green St.

There's Still Time to Throw Your Hat in the Ring!

On March 10 voters will choose representatives for City Council Districts 3, 5 and 7, and Board of Education Seats 1, 3, 5 and 7.

To run for one of the council districts, you must be 18 or older, and registered to vote in the specific district you're interested in.

To run for one of the school board seats, you must be 18 or older and registered to vote anywhere within the Pasadena Unified School District boundaries.

Complete and file nominating papers by Dec. 12 at the City Clerk's Office, Room S228 at Pasadena City Hall.

Visit here or call (626) 744-4124 for more information.

Water Conservation -- Take Action Now!

News flash -- The public hearing at City Council regarding proposed penalties for water wasters will be postponed to Sept. 22 at 7:30 p.m.

It is listed as Sept. 8 in the hard copy version of Pasadena In Focus. We have updated the website version to reflect Sept. 22 (see "Take Action Now!").

Many thanks to photographer extraordinaire Erica Rolufs of Pasadena Water and Power for shooting the photo!

C'mon Feel the Silence

OK, so it's a take on the Quiet Riot song:



It's quiet as a tomb here at Pasadena City Hall. Ordinarily the energy is quite high any day of the week, but there are no council meetings until Sept. 8. Some employees are on vacation and others are focusing on long-term projects that need some special attention.

Believe me, I have plenty of those kinds of projects. I ordinarily don't leave the building until about 9 p.m. or later because I get a lot of job-related writing done after 5;30 p.m. when the phones have stopped ringing off the hook.

I'm getting a lot of writing done so far, and hopefully I'll get home at a reasonable hour. We'll see. . .

By the way, I have to give a shout out to Aaron Proctor, who told me some time ago how to post a YouTube video (don't laugh). This is the first time I've done so.