PUBLIC INVITED TO MAYOR TORNEK’S STATE OF THE CITY EVENT JAN. 20, 2016
The public is invited to attend Mayor Terry Tornek’s first State of the City address Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, at William McKinley TK-8 School gymnasium, 325 S. Oak Knoll Ave. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the formal program begins at 7 p.m.

Mayor Tornek will deliver a budget message using illustrations that look at the City’s finances, including an examination of funding sources and how the City spends its money. A brief Q-and-A with the audience will follow.

Vice Mayor Gene Masuda will serve as emcee for the evening, and students from the McKinley School will also participate in the program.
The event is being held at the school’s new multi-purpose gymnasium built in cooperation by the City and the Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD). Please avoid wearing high heels in order to protect the new gymnasium floor.

Parking is available at the McKinley School parking lot on South El Molino Avenue and East Del Mar Boulevard; on the street in the immediate area of South Oak Knoll Avenue; at the Rose City High School parking lot off South Oak Knoll Avenue; and at the PUSD headquarters on East Del Mar Boulevard and South Oak Knoll Avenue.

KPAS, the City’s cable TV station operated by Pasadena Media, will record the event for broadcast. KPAS is available on Ch. 3 for Charter cable subscribers and Ch. 99 for AT&T U-verse subscribers. A video stream is also available on the City’s website, www.cityofpasadena.net/Media, and at Pasadena Media, www.pasadenamedia.tv.

For more information, contact Rhonda Stone, (626) 744-7147 or rstone@cityofpasadena.net. Stay connected to the City of Pasadena! Visit us online at www.cityofpasadena.net; follow us on Twitter @PasadenaGov, www.twitter.com/pasadenagov, and Instagram @PasadenaGov, www.instagram.com/pasadenagov; like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cityofpasadena; and subscribe to our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/pasadenagov. Or call the Citizen Service Center, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday at (626) 744-7311.
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION SOUGHT FOR POLICE OVERSIGHT MEETINGS JAN. 26 & 28, 2016

Members of the community are invited to attend two meetings in January to learn about various forms of police oversight and to provide input into the analysis being conducted by the City.

The meetings will be held at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 26, City Council Chamber, Pasadena City Hall, Second Floor, 100 N. Garfield Ave., and at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, January 28 at the Jackie Robinson Center’s Auditorium, 1020 N. Fair Oaks Ave.  Both meetings will cover the same topics and are being held in two locations to encourage participation.  Public comment will be accepted at both meetings.

“Pasadena enjoys an involved and concerned citizenry and a modern, professional Police Department,” said Councilmember John J. Kennedy, who chairs the City’s Public Safety Committee. 

“There is a need to build on the best of both, and the goal is to make us a better City.  To that end, the City has engaged outside professionals to lead a study of Independent Oversight to determine whether there are models of oversight from which Pasadena could benefit.  We need the public’s input and encourage their active and critical participation in this study and planning phase where it can make an appreciable difference,” Councilmember Kennedy said.

The City Council, as part of the Fiscal Year 2016 Operating Budget, approved funding for a consultant study of police oversight alternatives.  The City Council Public Safety Committee was charged with approving the scope of services for the study.

In December 2015, the City contracted with Change Integration Consulting, LLC, and one of its principals, Kathryn Olson.  Ms. Olson will conduct the study with Barbara Attard.  Both are recognized experts on the subject of police oversight and are past presidents of NACOLE, the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement.

Ms. Attard previously served as the Independent Police Auditor for the City of San Jose; as Director of the Berkeley Police Review Commission, and worked in the San Francisco Office of Citizen Complaints.  Ms. Olson’s prior experience includes serving as the civilian director of the Office of Professional Accountability for the City of Seattle’s Police Department.  She currently is part of a team developing a standardized system to assess police use of force.

In addition to conducting public outreach; meeting with government officials and members of the Pasadena Police Department, the consultants will prepare an analysis of various forms of police oversight along with possible recommendations.  The consultant’s final report is expected to be completed in March and will be presented to the Public Safety Committee and the City Council. 

Stay connected to the City of Pasadena!  Visit us online at www.cityofpasadena.net; follow us on Twitter @PasadenaGov, www.twitter.com/pasadenagov, and Instagram @PasadenaGov, www.instagram.com/pasadenagov; like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cityofpasadena; and subscribe to our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/pasadenagov.  Or call the Citizen Service Center, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday at (626) 744-7311.