07.19.18

PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS
BRIEFS
GOOD MEDICINE
NEW URGENT CARE FACILITY
OFFERS ER-LEVEL CARE
BY ANDRÉ COLEMAN
A new walk-in facility in East Pasadena is offering both
emergency and urgent care medical services to those with
and without insurance.
The aptly named More Than Urgent Care opened on July 18 at 3160 E. Del
Mar Blvd.,
More Than Urgent Care is one of California’s fastest-growing privately owned
emergency room alternatives staffed by emergency room physicians. X-rays, intravenous
work, splinting and laceration treatment is available onsite, along with diagnostic
testing — more service than a typical urgent care.
According to its website, Exer accepts all PPO insurance plans, some HMO plans,
and is affordable for patients without insurance.
The group also has facilities in Calabasas, Northridge, Beverly Hills, Newbury
Park, Sherman Oaks, Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach and Stevenson Ranch.
Each facility, according to the operation’s press materials, can handle 80 percent
of cases seen daily in a local emergency room for a fraction of the time and cost.
The group will work with Huntington Hospital help to ease the strain on local firstresponders.
There are currently three urgent care facilities in Pasadena.
“Across California, nearly one-third of all visits to hospital emergency departments
are not true emergencies,” according to Exer spokeswoman Stephanie
Cardenas. “As a result, hospitals are fi nding new ways to help patients
access the care they need with the least amount of waiting. Exer was founded
with a vision that some patients who are receiving care in an emergency room
could be better served in a more convenient, high-quality and affordable urgent
care environment.”
Mayor Terry Tornek and Vice Mayor John Kennedy were scheduled to attend the
opening of the facility. Representatives from the office of state Sen. Anthony Portantino,
D-Pasadena, were also expected to attend.
“By working in partnership with Huntington Hospital, Exer’s More Than
Urgent Care is leading a movement in health care to bring emergency medicine
directly into more communities to help people access the care they want, when
they need it most, while easing the strain on local emergency departments,”
said Cardenas. ■
SHADY SUBJECT
CITY TO HOLD MEETING ON FICUS
TREES ON GREEN STREET
BY ANDRÉ COLEMAN
Pasadena offi cials will conduct a community meeting
at 6 p.m. July 25 at the Pasadena Public Library,
Central Branch, to determine whether the city should
continue to plant fi cus trees on Green Street.
“Ficus trees provide a multitude of benefi ts for
Lisa Derderian
the city, but also pose unique challenges and maintenance costs that will be
discussed at this meeting,” said Pasadena Public Information Offi cer Lisa
Derderian.
According to Derderian, feedback gathered through the community meeting
and a survey will not result in the removal of any healthy trees.
Ficus trees have sparked debates in several communities, including
Burbank, Los Angeles and Seal Beach.
Many Los Angeles County cities planted the large, fast-growing species
decades ago because they provided shade on sidewalks and in parking lots. But,
as time passed, the roots of those trees began buckling sidewalks and leaving
debris on nearby buildings, leading to complaints by property owners.
In 2016, three fi cus trees were cut down as part of a settlement agreement
between the city and Beverly Hills-based Rodeo Holdings, LLC, owners of the
building at 427 S. Lake Ave., where the trees were located.
Rodeo Holdings claimed the trees had not been properly maintained by
the city, resulting in debris which clogged storm drains and accumulated on
sidewalks. They also said the large trees obstructed the view of the building
which affected the ability to rent the property. The property owners further
claimed that the damaged sidewalks could lead to a slip-and-fall lawsuit. The
city initially denied the request, but after the property owners provided reports
detailing the existing damage to the building and the sidewalk and an estimate
of pending damages, the city agreed to remove the trees.
This isn’t the fi rst time that plans to cut down trees have resulted in a public
outcry. In 2009, dozens of people attended City Council meetings to criticize
a 1996 streetscape plan that involved repairing damaged sidewalks along
portions of Colorado Boulevard in the city’s Playhouse District.
Thirteen fi cus trees and 20 carrotwood trees on Colorado between Los
Robles to Lake avenues were removed despite public protest.
Public input may also be submitted through a survey available here: https://
ww5.cityofpasadena.net/main/fi cus-tree-meeting/
The Pasadena Public Library Central Branch is located at 285 E. Walnut St.,
Pasadena. For more information, contact the Citizen Service Center at (626)
744-7311. ■
‘THE BIG ASK’
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
to 10.25 percent, which concerns the Chamber of
Commerce.
“Those who sell high-end and expensive items
may be priced out of a very competitive market,
especially for automobiles, computers and
appliances,” wrote chamber CEO and President
Paul Little. “If you tax these items to a point where
our sellers are not competitive, you may also reduce
tax revenues to the city. If it appears that I can save
a few hundred dollars or more by purchasing a car
20 miles away, why wouldn’t I do that?”
Little said the Chamber of Commerce has not yet
made a decision on supporting the tax increase.
According to the wording of the measure,
the tax increase would “maintain essential
city of Pasadena services such as fire, police,
paramedics, emergency service/response times;
keep fire stations open; improve neighborhood and
school safety; repair streets/sidewalks; address
homelessness; maintain after-school programs/
senior services, and other general fund services
by establishing a [three-quarter cent] sales tax
providing approximately $21 million annually until
ended by voters; requiring audits and all funds
locally controlled.”
If the measure passes, Pasadena would be
among cities imposing the highest local sales tax
rates in the nation.
Other residents also were concerned about
raising the sales tax and giving money to the school
district.
“I draw the line at an increase in sales tax,”
wrote Mary Foltyn. “The city should be earning
from the Rose Parade, the Rose Bowl games, hotels,
conventions, concerts, etc.”
The city has rejected potential revenue builders
over the past several years, including the NFL
temporarily playing in the Rose Bowl, a move that
could have generated millions of dollars per year.
The measure also connects the tax increase
to local schools and asks voters prioritize a big
portion of the money to the school district with
an “accessory” measure that reads: “If Pasadena
voters approve a local sales tax measure, should
the city use [two-thirds] of the measure’s annual
revenue to maintain essential city of Pasadena
services such as fire, police, paramedics, emergency
service/response times; keep fire stations open;
improve neighborhood and school safety; repair
streets/sidewalks; address homelessness; maintain
after-school programs/senior services; with the
remaining [one-third] of the measure’s revenue
going to support Pasadena public schools?”
The school district could be $12 million in debt
in two years which could force another round of
school closures and layoffs.
Earlier this year the Los Angeles County Office
of Education (LACOE) warned the district, that
they would be forced to take over if district officials
THE COUNT
As of Monday, 2,038 days after the war in Afghanistan ended …
2,224
American military
service members
(0 more
than last week)
were reported
killed in Afghanistan
since
the war began in
2001, according to
The Associated Press.
20
people were killed on
Monday when a
suicide bomber
detonated in
Afghanistan.
According to
Reuters, a Taliban
commander was
killed in the attack.
could not make the necessary cuts.
The district faces a $3 million budget deficit for
the 2019-20 school year, and a $12 million shortfall
for 2020-21.
Earlier this year, the board of education voted
to eliminate 139 full-time employees — 87 of
those positions held by teachers — to close a $6.9
million gap via current year reductions and revenue
increases. The board cut another $14.2 million in
reductions for the 2018-19 school year beginning in
September.
Despite the precarious situations, local residents
were not enthusiastic about raising taxes to help
the schools.
According to a city survey, most residents
considered using the money for first responders
as the top priority. Addressing homelessness,
repairing local streets and roads and maintaining
vital health services were also prioritized ahead of
supporting quality neighborhood schools, followed
by improving local math, reading and science
programs and sustaining afterschool and summer
youth programs.
“The PUSD pleads that it really needs more
money,” wrote Cliff Cates. “But the district plea
reminds me of the boy who, having just been
convicted of murdering his parents, pleads for
money on the [grounds] that he is now an orphan.
If the city were to give the district more money
without first demanding real reforms first, why
should it expect a different result this time
around?”
Tornek first called on the increase during
January’s annual State of the City Speech in which
he called the tax increase the “Big Ask” after telling
the audience he had tried telling people the day
was coming when the city would no longer be able
to rely on its current sources of revenue to pay its
bills.
According to the city staff report, some of the
basic needs include: upgrading fire stations to
current operational and safety standards, replacing
obsolete 911 emergency response communications,
replacing 17,000 street lights on old, failing highvoltage
circuits to safer, more reliable low-voltage
circuits and repairing more than 670,000 square feet
of damaged sidewalk.
More than 4,000 curb ramps will be redone
in compliance with Americans with Disabilities
Act standards and aging libraries, community
centers, bridges and emergency shelters will also be
upgraded.
In recent years, Pasadena residents have voted
in favor of four half-cent tax increases and one
quarter-cent county tax increase.
“Another major benefit of adopting a local
sales tax is that it will ensure that all funds are
controlled and spent locally,” the city’s staff report
states. ■
100
people protested social
issues in Baghdad,
shouting “We
will overthrow
the regime.”
Iraqi forces
were called in to
keep the peace,
according to CNN.
12
members of the Russian
military were indicted
by a grand jury last
week. According to
CNN, the accused
meddled in the
2016 election.
— Compiled by
André Coleman
8 PASADENA WEEKLY | 07.19.18