City Council Adopts $2.46 Billion Capital Improvement Program

[UPDATED] The Pasadena City Council unanimously approved the Fiscal Year 2026-2030 Capital Improvement Program budget at their meeting Monday night, May 5. The comprehensive infrastructure plan contains 218 active projects with a total estimated cost of $2.46 billion, including $446 million in appropriations for 119 projects in the coming fiscal year.

The Council was particularly concerned about the lack of additional investment to catch up on street paving citywide.  

During the last two years, the City Manager has put aside additional funds on top of the City’s traditional $5 million annual investment.  This has improved the city’s Pavement Condition Index, raising it from 53 in 2022 to 57 in 2024, with Public Works Director Greg DeVinck suggesting it might now be closer to 59. The Transportation Advisory Commission specifically advocated for increasing the citywide street resurfacing budget to between $11 to 15 million. While the CIP this year reverted to the former lower level, City Manager Miguel Márquez’s initial presentation of the proposed Operating Budget set aside a minimum of $4.3 million in General Funds, which would increase the overall paving budget to $10.2 million.

The City Manager’s Budget, including the CIP, calls for Pasadena to spend an overall total of almost exactly a billion and a half dollars next year. The $1.063 billion Operating Budget will be the subject of extensive Council Committee deliberations later this month.

“This is the beginning of the process,” Mayor Victor Gordo said after Finance Director Matt Hawkesworth outlined the key elements of the proposed Operating Budget, which calls for a number of enhancements, including adding another Battalion Chief to the Fire Department and backfilling expiring grant funding for the Health Department and the City’s PORT homeless outreach team.

Later in the meeting, the Council also unanimously approved a critical climate initiative, directing Pasadena Water and Power to pursue four scenarios recommended by the Municipal Services Committee to achieve 100% carbon-free electricity by 2030, focusing on developing 80-130 megawatts of local solar and 100-125 megawatts of local energy storage.

“This represents a breakthrough, right?” Councilmember Rick Cole said. “We can see the goal. We can’t see for certain that we’ll get to a hundred percent every hour of the year 2031, but we can see that that is within range.”

Councilmember Steve Madison commented on the progress already made: “When we adopted the carbon-free by 2030, we were told …  at the time, it’s not possible. The sky’s falling, you’re going to bankrupt the residents and the city… And I think the council pretty much disagreed with every single assertion. And here we sit just two years later.”

The four scenarios differ slightly, but all call for using the natural gas-powered Glenarm Plant only if needed as a back-up during emergencies. Pasadena Water and Power staff, headed by David Reyes, whose interim role as general manager was made permanent on Monday by the City Manager, will bring detailed cost estimates and implementation plans for achieving the local solar and storage options.

During discussions of the Capital Improvement Program, the Council addressed multiple priorities including brush clearance in the Arroyo Seco. Mayor Gordo suggested creating “a full-time crew much like we do with MASH or maybe as part of MASH that would do year-round clearance in the arroyo and trail restoration.”

The Council also increased penalties for fireworks violations in response to recent fire dangers, with fines now ranging from $250 to $1,000 depending on the type of fireworks involved and number of offenses associated with the violator.

Previous public comments on the CIP highlighted several concerns, including correspondence from the Playhouse Village Foundation advocating for updating the city’s Street Tree Master Plan, though no funding for this update was included in the approved Capital Improvement Program.

“The current Street Tree Master Plan does not allow for appropriate shade trees on Colorado Boulevard in the Playhouse Village,” wrote Playhouse Village Foundation Board Chair Phil Hawkey, noting that current trees are ginkgo and palm trees, “neither of which provide any shade.”

Prior to the final Capital Improvement Program vote, the Council handled separate votes on certain projects requiring recusals. Mayor Gordo and Vice Mayor Jess Rivas recused themselves from voting on utility undergrounding projects due to property interests near those areas. Councilmember Justin Jones recused himself from voting on sewer, storm drain, and Arroyo projects that involved Measure W funding due to his employment with Los Angeles County Public Works.

Several Councilmembers expressed concern about the process for setting budget priorities. 

Councilmember Cole suggested that in future years, the Council should have “a clearer opportunity to set our priorities as a Council ahead of the preparation of the budget.” 

The approved Capital Improvement Program budget leaves an outstanding funding need of $1.13 billion for active projects, which does not included various unfunded projects such as the Rose Bowl’s $200 million long-term capital budget, nor the capital investment needed to implement the City’s Specific Plans for North Lake, Lincoln Avenue, North Fair Oaks, East Colorado and Lamanda Park. 

Councilmember Cole emphasized the importance of priority-setting for next year’s CIP: “We have $2 billion of unfunded needs. Let’s try to get our arms around setting priorities for how we tackle that before we ask the city manager to propose his budget next year.”

Mayor Gordo also asked colleagues to consider whether the current committee-based budget review of the Operating Budget provides sufficient opportunity for the full Council to weigh in on priorities.

“I think the budget does reflect the decisions and the priorities that the council’s made over the years,” responded Councilmember Madison, supporting the current process while acknowledging room for improvement.

The approved Capital Improvement Program budget leaves an outstanding funding need of $1.13 billion for active projects.