City Invites Neighbors to Shape Stormwater Project Downstream of Eaton Fire Burn Zone Today

The City of Pasadena will host a community visioning event Saturday at Jefferson Park to gather resident input on an underground stormwater capture system planned for a site that sits downstream of areas burned in the January 2025 Eaton Fire, according to a city press release.

Saturday’s free event runs from 10 a.m. to noon at the picnic tables near the corner of Monte Vista Street and Hamilton Avenue at Jefferson Park, 1501 E. Villa St. It is the second in a series of bilingual outreach events.

The proposed system would divert storm and dry-weather flows from the Sierra Bonita Drain — which drains a 567-acre area largely outside city limits, including neighborhoods damaged by the fire — into an underground infiltration gallery beneath the 4.4-acre park. The system would capture all dry-weather flows and up to 3.5 acre-feet of runoff per storm, infiltrating it into the Raymond Basin before it reaches the Rio Hondo and Los Angeles River, according to the trade publication Stormwater Solutions and city documents.

About 86% of that drainage area lies outside Pasadena city limits in unincorporated Los Angeles County, including neighborhoods damaged by the Eaton Fire.

The project would install subsurface treatment facilities beneath the park to intercept and filter runoff before it reaches the Rio Hondo and Los Angeles River, according to the city’s project page. The proposed system is capable of storing up to 38.5 acre-feet annually, according to Stormwater Solutions.

The city must submit a community-supported concept by July 31 to apply for design funding estimated at $16.4 million, according to the city’s project page. That funding has not yet been secured.

The city has spent $441,000 on pre-design work so far, funded by $250,000 from Measure W Local Return funds and a $191,180 community engagement grant from the Los Angeles County Safe, Clean Water Program, according to city officials.

Above-ground park amenities will be identified through community input, according to the city’s project page. The underground infrastructure addresses the city’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System permit requirements to improve water quality in local waterways, the project page states.

The design configuration for the subsurface system remains under evaluation, with the city’s project page describing both single-facility and two-facility options at different locations beneath the park.

“This funding is critical to ensuring the Jefferson Park project is not just environmentally effective, but also reflective of community priorities,” Greg de Vinck, the city’s director of public works, said in a statement.

Jefferson Park is one of 10 Priority 1 projects identified in Pasadena’s 2022 Storm Drain Master Plan, according to Stormwater Solutions.

Craftwater Engineering, which has offices in Pasadena, is leading the feasibility study, with Dudek and Altadena-based nonprofit Amigos de Los Rios supporting community outreach, according to the city’s project page.

Residents can contact the city’s Stormwater Program Administrator at SWAdministrator@cityofpasadena.net or call the City Service Center at (626) 744-7311 during business hours. Project information is available at bit.ly/JeffersonParkProject.

“Our goal is to engage residents throughout the planning process and shape a project that delivers real, lasting benefits to Jefferson Park,” de Vinck said in a separate statement.