City Hall Scoop

As we vaccinate our residents who are 65 and older, we have been noting a very damaging pattern of disproportionality. White and Asian residents 65 and older continue to have the highest vaccination rates. As of March 6th, almost 56% of white residents and almost 53% of Asian residents 65 and older have received at least one dose of the vaccine while almost 48% of American Indian/Alaska Native residents, 43% of Latinx residents, and 38% of Black residents who are age 65 and older have received at least one dose.

And while these inequities are stark and unfair, we have been working to close these gaps and we have made some progress in improving vaccination rates in the hardest hit communities. The vaccination rate for Black residents saw the largest increase at almost 92%.  For American Indian/Alaska Native residents, the vaccine rate increased almost 70%, and Latinx residents’ vaccine rate increased by 65.8%. The vaccine rate for white residents increased by 46.1% and for Asian residents increased 44.3%.

As more groups become eligible to be vaccinated and we continue to have a shortage of supply, we are prioritizing closing these gaps and making sure that the hardest hit communities have access to the vaccine, and barriers that prevent this are mitigated.

Strategies to ensure this include:

• Having sites in areas that have been most impacted by this pandemic and have the fewest resources;
• Collaborating with faith based and community based partners to make appointments for community residents; and
• Creating ways to solve transportation and registration barriers.

We will continue to work with our extraordinary partners to innovate and create ways that are tailored to our county and to the people who live here so that everyone has access to the vaccine.

3/15/21

Think that drip from the faucet is no big deal? Think again! Those drops add up and can account for nearly 10,000 gallons of water wasted every year. Join EPA’s annual Fix a Leak Week to find and fix the leaks in your home. Common types of leaks found in the home are worn toilet flappers, dripping faucets, and other leaking valves. Fixing leaks can be easy, requiring just a few tools, and can save homeowners about 10 percent on their water bills. Visit www.epa.gov/watersense/fix-leak-week for videos on how to fix the most common household leaks!

03/15/21

Please see the revised Los Angeles County Health Officer Order, which was modified Friday, March 12 to closely align with the State’s re-opening framework and reflect the changes allowed in the red tier. The changes go into effect on Monday, March 15 at 12:01 a.m. Revised protocols, as noted on Pgs. 24-25 of the Order, are available on the website.

Thank you for your ongoing efforts to keep Los Angeles County residents safe and healthy.

3/15/21

Please see the Los Angeles County Health Officer Order, modified to reflect changes with respect to small gatherings for fully vaccinated people per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Interim Guidance for fully vaccinated people and visits or small private gatherings.

Public Health has posted a fact sheet explaining the changes on their website.

Please also see today’s press release with new information about vaccine eligibility for custodians and janitors, public transit workers, and airport ground crew workers and upcoming eligibility beginning March 15 for people ages 16 through 64 who have underlying health conditions or disabilities that put them at the highest risk of becoming very sick from COVID-19.

03/11/21

The South Pasadena Public Library has received the following federal and state tax forms and instructions from the IRS and the Franchise Tax Board: 1040, 1040-SR, 540, and 540- 2EZ. These forms and booklets are available free to the public at the Library Takeout station at the main entrance on Oxley Street during Takeout hours. Tax forms and instructions not listed here can be obtained from www.irs.gov and www.ftb.ca.gov. People without access to the internet may call the Reference Desk at 626-403-7350  to ask about requesting other forms. Hours: Monday-Thursday, 1:00-7:00 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 1:00-5:00 p.m.; Sunday Closed.

Cathy Billings
Library Director

03/11/21

The City of South Pasadena City Council and Public Safety Commission invite you to attend a virtual Community Forum to provide your input to the interim city manager as he contemplates the appointment of South Pasadena’s next Chief of Police. Community members in attendance will have an opportunity to share their thoughts about the desired qualities of the next chief, and characteristics a successful candidate should possess. Members of the City Council, the Public Safety Commission, and the Interim City Manager will be in attendance to listen to all community input.

Interim City Manager Sean Joyce encourages all stakeholders and community members to participate, stating, “Engagement and involvement are critical components of the process.”

Questions residents should be prepared to answer include:

What are the challenges in the community the new Police Chief will need to address?

What are traits and qualities that you would like to see in a successful candidate?

What types of professional experiences should the next Chief have?

What educational background should a Police Chief have?

After the Community Forum, the feedback will be consolidated and integrated into the recruitment process. 

Community forum will take place on:

Monday, March 15, 2021, from 6-7 p.m.

Zoom info:

Topic: City Council / PSC Virtual Community Forum – Chief of Police Recruitment

Webinar ID: 935 6874 8517 Passcode: 265541

Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/93568748517?pwd=N3BxNzdDZmRMUXBxUGNzNUEvNE9hZz09

3/10/21

The CDC released guidance this morning which states that fully vaccinated people can gather indoors with other fully vaccinated people in small groups without wearing masks or practicing physical distancing.

Individuals are considered fully vaccinated 2 weeks or more after they have received the second dose of either Pfizer or Moderna or two weeks or more after they have received the single dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine. Fully vaccinated people can also visit with unvaccinated people from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing. 

Fully vaccinated people should continue to wear a mask and maintain physical distance in public. They should mask, physically distance, and practice other prevention measures when visiting unvaccinated people at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease or who have an unvaccinated household member at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease, and when around unvaccinated people from multiple households. Fully vaccinated people should also avoid medium- and large-sized in-person gatherings.

LA County and the California DPH are reviewing this guidance and will be updating our guidance shortly.

3/10/21

Last Friday, the State announced updates to their Blueprint for a Safer Economy. In addition to assessing County case rates, positivity rates and positivity rates in neighborhoods with the lowest scores in the Healthy Places Index, the State is now taking into consideration the number of vaccinations that have been administered in the lowest resourced neighborhoods statewide. Unlike the other 3 metrics, vaccination numbers will be calculated statewide and used to change the case rate thresholds for counties to move from one tier to another.

On Friday, the state also announced a plan to permit the reopening of outdoor sporting events, live outdoor concerts and theme parks, starting on April 1^st.

Starting April 1^st, outdoor sporting events and outdoor live concerts will be permitted with significant capacity and infection control modifications. For counties in the purple tier, capacity at these outdoor events will be limited to 100 people or less, reservations will be required, and concessions will not be allowed.  Only people who live in the region where the event is taking place will be permitted to attend.  Once in the red tier, these outdoor events can open at 20% capacity, limited to in-state visitors only; concessions will be allowed only while seated.  As counties move into less restrictive tiers, the allowed capacity will increase.

Theme parks can open for counties in the red tier at 15% of capacity with in-state visitors only, and as counties move into less restrictive tiers, the allowed capacity again increases.

Public Health is working with the Board of Supervisors and sector partners to plan safe re-openings in LA County at these newly re-opening venues.

03/09/21

This joint effort combines the CLCA Water Management Certification Program with the Qualified Water Efficient Landscaper program to offer the landscape industry an opportunity to obtain two nationally recognized EPA WaterSense Professional Certifications with one course and one written test.

Presented virtually in six three-hour classes, these workshops will offer CEUs for your current certifications and provide you with a participation certificate. These workshops are FREE and available only to those in select counties of Southern California within the Metropolitan Water District’s service area which includes South Pasadena.

The combined curriculum focuses on landscaping fundamentals in one convenient course and includes topics like:

• Where Our Water Comes From
• Sustainable Landscaping
• Landscape Water
• Soils
• Irrigation Systems
• Irrigation Maintenance & Trouble Shooting
• Irrigation System Auditing

Sign up now to attend at clca.org/weldcp

3/9/21

Kelvin Machado of the Water Division is the first Public Works Employee of the Quarter. The program recognizes exceptional Public Works staff throughout the year.  Kelvin was selected for his dedication, leadership, teamwork, and his positive attitude. He demonstrated these qualities by volunteering to be on the Public Works Safety Committee and making a collaborative effort with his team during daily tasks. Kelvin is a valuable resource to his co-workers and supervision because he continually seeks out new information and techniques in Water Distribution, which he readily shares with his co-workers. Kelvin plays an important role in providing a safe and clean drinking water to our residents. Kudos to Kelvin.

3/8/21