Pasadena to Weigh a 10-Year, $227 Million Fire Protection Overhaul Tonight

Pasadena’s City Council is slated to take up a sweeping, decade-long plan this evening to expand and modernize the city’s fire protection system, a proposal the Fire Department says is driven by rising call volumes, denser development and escalating wildfire risk along the city’s foothill edge.

The discussion item, submitted by Fire Chief Chad Augustin as a presentation with no formal city staff recommendation, outlines a 2026–2035 build-out of leadership staffing, fire companies, ambulances and station projects.

What’s in the proposal

The plan phases upgrades across three windows:

Short term (fiscal years 2026 to 2027): Add an Operational Battalion Chief team (three full-time positions) to tighten span of control and accountability; vehicles for the new chief role are budgeted.

Positions are expected to be filled beginning in fiscal year 2026 quarter three.

Medium term (fiscal years 2028 to 2030): Stand up a ninth suppression (engine) company, add a seventh rescue ambulance, and tear down and rebuild Station 33.

Personnel and apparatus costs for these units are itemized in the presentation.

Long term (fiscal years 2031 to 2035): Add a third ladder truck and an eighth rescue ambulance, rebuild Station 37, and construct a new ninth fire station.

Price tag and timing

While the staff narrative refers broadly to a roughly $220 million commitment, the detailed slide deck tallies a grand total of $227,266,236 when infrastructure, ongoing personnel and apparatus, and vegetation-management expenses are combined. The materials note that several figures are in future-year dollars.

• Infrastructure (stations): $102.3 million.
  • Station 33 rebuild: construction 2029 to 2031; $30.5 million.
  • Station 37 rebuild: construction 2031 to 2033; $34.0 million.
  • New station: construction 2033 to 2035; $37.8 million (land not included).
• Personnel and apparatus (ongoing): $113,759,288. That subtotal comprises $86,479,288 for positions, $17,296,000 for coverage, and $9,984,000 in apparatus costs distributed over the decade.
• Vegetation management: $1,016,359 annually with a 5 percent year-over-year escalator, totaling $11,206,948 from fiscal years 2027 to 2035 for brush clearance, weed abatement, tree services, goat grazing and workforce programs.

Where a new station could go

The presentation maps three candidate areas for the added station, selected for incident patterns and expected growth with taller, higher-density buildings: near East Washington Boulevard between Lake Avenue and North Hill Avenue; along Los Robles Avenue between South Arroyo Parkway and El Molino Avenue; and near the Rose Bowl.

Why the department says it’s needed

Pasadena Fire describes itself as an “all-hazard” agency and cites several pressures behind the build-out: a 33 percent increase in total call volume since fiscal year 2012, an aging and growing population, high-density infill and commercial expansion, and the need to improve response times as development intensifies. The department also points to a changing wildfire environment regionally, referencing the Eaton and Palisades fires as illustrative events.

Potential add-ons and relocation study

Two items are flagged as potential projects rather than core commitments: a dedicated training center, estimated at $14 million to $20 million depending on scope and site conditions at the city’s Civil Defense Center, and relocating Fire Administration headquarters to the Rose Bowl area if federal funding materializes. A separate page lists Station 32 for a tear-down and replacement with construction spanning 2033 to 2035 at an estimated $37.85 million in fiscal year 2033 dollars.

What happens tonight

The agenda item is a presentation with no staff recommendation; the council may discuss, give direction or take action at its discretion. Any decision on how to pay for the decade-long program—whether through the general fund, bonds, grants or other tools—would require separate policy steps. The Fire Department says it will use community engagement to refine priorities and begin a dialog on potential financing strategies.

Pasadena’s City Council and the Successor Agency to the Community Development Commission meet tonight, September 29, with a closed session at 5 p.m., followed by a public meeting and public hearing at 6 p.m. in the Council Chamber at City Hall, 100 North Garfield Avenue, Room S249.

The full council agenda is online here.