What is the WPRA?
The West Pasadena Residents' Association is an all-volunteer organization of the residents of southwest Pasadena dedicated to maintaining and enhancing the character of southwest Pasadena and the quality of life in Pasadena.
Your membership, contributions and volunteer support are key to the WPRA's success. All activities of the WPRA are funded through membership dues and contributions. The WPRA receives no public funding or other monies and has no paid employees. The WPRA does not endorse or otherwise support or oppose candidates for public office, and no WPRA funds are spent in support of or in opposition to candidates.
Become involved! See the links on the left for information on joining, donating, or volunteering with the WPRA.
We are pleased to display some of the work of local artist Joseph Stoddard on our web site. To learn more about the artist click here.
The Latest
San Rafael School Future in Doubt -- Discovery of faults halt renovations; WPRA takes action (May 2012)
The Pasadena Unified School District last week informed San Rafael Elementary School students, families, teachers and staff of the discovery of four seismic faults passing through the school campus, found while conducting routine studies in preparation of the Measure TT renovation project at the school. PUSD is examining several options for the future of the school. On Thursday, May 17, PUSD held a community meeting in the McKinley School auditorium.
During the community meeting, the WPRA presented a letter to PUSD Superintendent Jon Gundry expressing WPRA's grave concern about PUSD's precipitous rush to close San Rafael. "WPRA believes that PUSD must establish a more deliberate timeline, one that allows a stakeholder committee to resolve questions regarding the necessity of any action before recommending that the Board of Education make a final decision, and that also includes the community in all aspects of evaluation. The school, the community, and most especially the children, deserve a careful and thorough process to determine the best way forward." Click here to read the WPRA letter.
WPRA Submits Comments and Concerns about Temporary Use of Rose Bowl by NFL (Apr 2012)
The City of Pasadena is soliciting "comments and concerns regarding the environmental issues" associated with temporary NFL use of the Rose Bowl. Details of the City's proposed use conditions are here. Soliciting public comments is the first step in the preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the project.
WPRA submitted a formal letter on April 12 detailing concerns about the EIR process and document. The concerns stem from our survey of West Pasadena residents in December 2011, from conversations with City officials, and from the 2005 debate and EIR relating to permanent use of the Rose Bowl by an NFL team. You can read the letter here.
In summary, we said that,
WPRA's current focus is making sure the City follows its own rules and applicable laws in developing the upcoming Draft EIR. WPRA will insist on an EIR that fully and accurately studies all the potential environmental impacts of NFL at the Rose Bowl including: (1) the impact of NFL games on recreational users of the Arroyo; (2) the impact of NFL games on residential neighborhoods adjacent to the Rose Bowl; (3) traffic, circulation, and parking; (4) security and safety; and (5) public disclosure during the EIR process of all NFL-related lease documents and economic studies.
Most of WPRA’s present concerns are consistent with the comments and concerns we expressed when permanent use of the Rose Bowl by NFL was considered by the City in 2005. The 2005 draft EIR was woefully deficient. We are concerned that the draft EIR being prepared now will also be inadequate.
If you would like to make comments directly to the City, and WPRA encourages you to do so, submit them to David Sinclair, Planner, Phone: (626) 744-6766, e-mail: dsinclair@cityofpasadena.net. The comment period ends April 18, 2012.
The WPRA will be vigilant in representing West Pasadena residents throughout the EIR process. We will continue to keep you informed through the weekly Neighborhood Update email, this website, and The News, the quarterly WPRA magazine.
WPRA Survey of West Pasadena Residents Regarding NFL at the Rose Bowl (Jan 2012)
The potential for a National Football League (NFL) team using the Rose Bowl stadium as a home
field — while its permanent stadium is built — continues to enliven discussions throughout Pasadena, and especially in West Pasadena.
To find out what West Pasadenans think about a temporary use of the Rose Bowl by the NFL, the WPRA mailed a questionnaire to 5,700 households in the WPRA service area and emailed a link for an online version of the survey to the nearly 1,000 subscribers of Neighborhood Update, the WPRA’s weekly eNewsletter. We received over 1,200 responses.
Overall results are shown in the accompanying chart. Click here for more detail.
Rose Bowl Renovation Underway (Mar 2011)
The $152 million Rose Bowl renovation project approved by the City Council last year started on January 10, 2011. Construction will be complete in time for the 100th Rose Bowl Game, January 1, 2014.
New Rose Bowl Renovation Roundup. In March, 2011, the Rose Bowl Operating Company started publishing a newsletter to let the community know what's been going on, what's on deck, and some surprises. View the newsletter here.
WPRA and other neighborhood organizations are working with the Rose Bowl Operating Company to minimize affects of the construction activity on our neighborhoods.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) about construction and mitigations has been developed and approved by Rose Bowl Operating Company, East Arroyo Residents Association, Linda Vista Annandale Association and West Pasadena Residents Association. The MOU focuses on areas of potential impact, and how they could be mitigated, and also outlines a communication process between neighborhood organizations adjacent to the Rose Bowl and the Rose Bowl construction management team.
For information on the renovation, please go to www.rosebowlstadium.com or you may contact Rose Bowl Event Manager, Abie Bacon at (626) 577-3101. In addition, you can contact WPRA (click on "contact us" in the left margin) or Takako Suzuki, our (District 6) City Council Field Representative.
Sign Up for Pasadena Fire Alerts through Pasadena Local Emergency Alert System (Mar 26)
The City of Pasadena Fire Department has implemented a system for sending emergency and other urgent messages to community members through text and voice messages. The Fire Department urges community members to sign up for the system, called PLEAS (Pasadena Local Emergency Alert System). Click here for details and sign-up.
This is in addition to the Pasadena Police community information service, Nixle, which provides routine (rather than emergency) information releases. Click here for Nixle information and sign-up.
For more information, visit http://cityofpasadena.net/Fire/PLEAS. Please direct all inquiries to PasadenaLocalAlert@cityofpasadena.net.
Check Out Updated Crime Statistics (thru March 2012) and Recently Reported Incidents
Neighborhood safety was a key concern expressed in our recent resident survey. The WPRA Neighborhood Safety Committee is continuing to work with Pasadena Police Department and other agencies on these issues.
The WPRA is a 501c3 non-profit public benefit corporation. Membership contributions and donations are fully deductible to the extent permitted by law.
