PUSD Board Authorizes Litigation, Exempts Itself From City Tree Protection Ordinance Rules

The Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education voted 7-0 in closed session Thursday to initiate litigation to shield its campuses and its contaminated soil removal project from “interference,” then voted in open session to render City of Pasadena zoning ordinances inapplicable to district property — a move district counsel told the board would allow tree removals now affected by the city’s stop-work notices to proceed. 

The board did not identify the target of the litigation. 

The legal action was announced on the board’s return from closed session, before the evening session convened. 

The board “approved initiating litigation to protect against interference on the district’s all campuses and property and the approved and ongoing contaminated soil removal and remediation project,” board President Tina Fredericks said, then read the unanimous roll call vote into the record.

“No further [closed session] action was taken,” Fredericks said. 

The board’s second action was to approve Resolution No. 2896, which invokes the district’s authority under Government Code section 53094 to exempt itself from city zoning rules. 

Scott J. Sachs, an attorney with Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo who serves as legal counsel to the district, told trustees the resolution would remove the basis for the city’s stop-work notices. 

“We understand that the stop work order notices are based upon the city’s belief that the tree ordinance is part of their zoning code,” he said. “And so the government code allows school districts to exempt themselves from this. It was decided by the legislature a long time ago.” 

Passing the resolution, he said, restores the district’s options. 

The board’s debate 

Trustee Yarma Velázquez framed the vote narrowly.

“Tonight’s resolution is not a vote on whether or not we value the trees. It’s not a resolution to remove the trees. It is a determination about jurisdiction,” she said. “It’s about which governmental agency has the authority to make the decision regarding the work that’s taking place on school district during our post-fire remediation and campus restoration efforts.” 

Trustee Patrice Marshall McKenzie said the district and the city “are peer agencies. One is not subordinate to the other or vice versa.” 

Trustee Richardson Bailey said the dispute was consuming the district.

“It’s just hard to go every morning I wake up and there’s something in the paper. There’s rude emails,” she said. “This is costing us time and money.” 

She said she would support the resolution “because we need to move forward.” 

Trustee Kenne said the district was already under state oversight. 

“We don’t feel that we are under the city’s jurisdiction in this case, and this is aligned with that,” she said. 

Fredericks spoke against the resolution. Earlier in the meeting, she had asked staff directly whether there had been “any informal solutioning between the city and district staff in regard to soil remediation to limit tree removal.” 

“Not that I’m aware of,” a staff member answered. 

“Not one conversation,” Fredericks said before the vote. “I refuse to believe that we have no responsibility in that.”

“Which is why I am going to vote no on this resolution because we can do better,” she said. 

After the meeting City of Pasadena Chief Communications Officer Lisa Derderian released a city statement which read in part:

“The City has always valued our collaborative relationship and has worked diligently to assist PUSD. The City maintains its focus, which is the retention of protected trees during the soil remediation process and hopes PUSD leadership will carefully consider options that retain protected trees and restore lost canopy moving forward.”