Story by Charlie Betts Staff Writer Photo by Oscar Walsh Staff Photographer The Teachers Association of South Pasadena (TASP) voiced concern about the proposed SPUSD instructional models for the upcoming school year and have called for an emergency SPUSD school board meeting to address the problems. In June, teachers were given a variety of instructional models to […]
Community may get a chance to vote on raising building height maximums to create mandated affordable housing
Story by Zoe Schlaak Staff Writer Photo by Katelyn Hernandez Staff Photographer The city council will decide whether to put a proposal raising the city’s 45-foot building height limit on the November ballot, at its meeting on Wednesday Aug. 5. The South Pasadena Planning Commission did not recommend that the height maximum increase be placed on the […]
Residents voice encounters with the SPPD at virtual community forum
Story by Georgia Parsons Staff Writer Photo by Richard Gomez Contributor South Pasadena community members shared their experiences with the SPPD in an effort to improve policing and public safety in the city at a storytelling forum on Thursday, July 16. The forum is the first event organized by the city council’s new Future of Policing […]
Coronavirus case increase prompts statewide reclosing of businesses
Story by Eddie Zhou Staff Writer Photo by Oscar Walsh Staff Photographer California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a revised order requiring the immediate closure of moderate-risk businesses after a recent uptake in coronavirus cases — effective Monday, Jul. 13. Additionally, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) announced its plans to hold instruction strictly online come August in […]
District faces legal action for ties to SPEF’s tuition-based summer school
Story by Haelee Kim Staff Writer Photo by Ella Jayasekera Photography Editor South Pasadena resident John Srebalus raised the possibility of legal action against South Pasadena Unified School District (SPUSD) due to their awarding of credit to the tuition-based South Pasadena Educational Foundation (SPEF) summer school classes. Srebalus’ lawyers stated that the District’s current embrace […]
D.U.D.E.S. performances and outdoor community artwork replace traditional Fourth of July parade and fireworks
Story by Quinn Manzo Staff Writer Photo by Oscar Walsh Staff Photographer Dads Uniting Dads in Education and Service (D.U.D.E.S) is bringing the Fourth of July festivities to South Pas residents in light of the cancellation of the annual parade and fireworks show. In addition, the South Pasadena Recreation Department and the South Pasadena Arts […]
Residents with signs supporting BLM discover clusters of nails on their driveways
Story by Sam Grotenstein Staff Writer Photo by Amy Betts Contributor South Pasadena residents who had publicly shown support for the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement through lawn signs recently found piles of nails left on the end of their driveways. Amy Betts was the first community member to report the incident on a local Facebook group, […]
“It’s OK to be white” flyers return to South Pasadena
Story by Zoe Schlaak Staff Writer Photo by Anonymous Contributor South Pasadena residents spotted two white men posting flyers around town that read “It’s OK to be white” (IOTBW), a white supremacist slogan, on Saturday, June 27. The men displayed them on cars parked in front of houses that promoted Black Lives Matter (BLM) with posters […]
SPY4PR hosts community vigil for Tamir Rice’s 18th birthday
Story and Photo by Katie HohmanStaff Writer South Pasadena Youth For Police Reform (SPY4PR) held a vigil service to celebrate Tamir Rice’s 18th birthday and honor other victims of police killings at Garfield Park on Thursday, June 25. Community members showed up to commemorate Tamir Rice at sunset and many placed candles and flowers around a […]
City council votes down proposed budget while approving sub-committee on future of policing in South Pasadena
Story by Sofia Alva Staff Writer Photo by Katelyn Hernandez Staff Photographer The city council voted down the proposed budget and instead opted to continue appropriations of the 2019-2020 budget at its meeting on Wednesday, June 24. Council members also approved the creation of a six member sub-committee regarding the future of policing in South Pasadena. […]
City faces $20 million civil rights lawsuit in Vanessa Marquez officer-involved shooting
Story by Kahlen Miao Staff Writer Reporting by Noah Kuhn News Editor Photo by Patrick Baca Contributor The family of late actress Vanessa Marquez announced that a civil rights lawsuit was filed over her 2018 killing by SPPD officers on Wednesday, June 24. The family demanded that the police officers involved be reinvestigated and held accountable for […]
School board adopts 2020-2021 district budget while discussing ways to implement diverse curriculum
Story by Georgia ParsonsStaff Writer Photo by Oscar WalshStaff Photographer The South Pasadena School Board officially approved and adopted the 2020-2021 district budget at its meeting on Tuesday, June 23. The newly adopted budget eliminates several district staff jobs in addition to reducing funds in several different departments. Budget cuts in faculty, staff, and administration departments […]
SPPD’s arrest of a crime suspect draws community criticism for excessive force
Story by Lilian Zhu Staff Writer Photo courtesy of South Pasadena Youth For Police Reform Contributor The SPPD forcibly detained a middle-aged Black man on charges of assault and robbery in front of city hall on Tuesday, June 23. The police watch commander reported that the person had assaulted an individual and stolen their phone, […]
City council to vote on establishing a community policing sub-committee
Story by Noah Kuhn News Editor Photo by Richard Gomez Contributor The South Pasadena City Council will vote on whether to appoint a council sub-committee on the future of policing in South Pasadena at a special meeting on Wednesday, June 24. The sub-committee would collect data on SPPD practices and study the effects of city laws […]
Discovery of life-saving drug coincides with L.A. County’s increase in coronavirus cases
Story by Janice Park and Lenise Diaz Contributors Illustration by Alicia Zhang Staff Illustrator This week California reported a record-high increase in the number of new coronavirus cases in a single day, prompting Governor Gavin Newsom to enact an order that mandates face masks in all public areas. Also, researchers from the University of Oxford found a way to […]
SPUSD discusses hybrid schedule for next school year
Story by Eddie Zhou Staff Writer Photo by Tucker Judkins Contributor South Pasadena Unified School District (SPUSD) has begun preliminary discussions to implement a hybrid schedule model that consists of both in-person and virtual learning for the 2020-2021 school year. School officials maintain that these are only proposals and no final decision has been made. […]