Ben Tansey
Ben Tansey is a journalist and author. He grew up in the South Bay and is a graduate of Evergreen State College. He worked in Washington State as a reporter in a rural timber community and for many years as an editor for a Western electric energy policy publication based in Seattle.
Case Settled | City Settles Another Lawsuit: Hanscom Drive
The city of South Pasadena Thursday announced it will make a $200,000 payment to city resident Alison Smith to settle her four-year-old case against...
City Council | Delays, Costs and Discrepancies Affecting General Plan
South Pasadena’s long and expensive struggle to produce a general plan and related housing element is creating regulatory and legal troubles for the city,...
Caltrans Homes South Pasadena | Tenants Push City Not To Dismiss
Supporters of a group of South Pasadena Caltrans tenants implored city council members last week not to abandon a faltering lawsuit the City undertook...
CalTrans Homes South Pasadena | City & Caltrans to Plunge into Action
The South Pasadena City Council is set to take big steps tonight in its quest for a satisfactory final disposition for the remaining 68...
Elections 2022 | Mahmud Will Not Seek 3rd Term
Diana Mahmud, the second most senior member of the South Pasadena City Council who has twice served as Mayor, announced this week she will...
Caltrans Properties | LA City Council Consider Plan to Buy 77 El Sereno Properties
The Los Angeles City Council’s Homelessness and Poverty Committee on Thursday, March 10 will consider a proposal from its chief legislative analyst (CLA) to...
South Pasadena Seeks Dismissal of BLM Protesters’ Civil Rights Complaints
The City of South Pasadena has asked federal Judge Dale S. Fischer to dismiss all seven claims filed last October by BLM protesters Fahren...
City Council | BLM Mural Must Await Public Art Policy
South Pasadena City Council members said they won’t consider approving the South Pasadena High School Anti-Bias Club’s (ABC) proposal for a Black Lives Matter...
History of City Treasurer Struggles in South Pasadena
As the City Council prepares to consider asking voters whether to change the City Treasurer’s position to an appointive instead of elective office, a...
City Treasurer | City Considers Elimination of Elected Treasurer
During a City Council session Feb. 16, the question whether the city should ask voters to approve changing from an elected to an appointed...
Consolidation of Commissions | City Council to Consider Changes
Recommendations for a wholesale consolidation of South Pasadena’s famously unwieldy system of two dozen citizen boards and commissions will be the topic of a...
Vote on Power | City Council is Moving to 100% CPA Supply for Businesses
Citing the “profound environmental impact” it will have, the South Pasadena City Council on Wednesday February 16, 2022 will act to increase to 100...
Supreme Court Nominee Short List | South Pasadenan Leondra Reid Kruger
Leondra Reid Kruger, a California Supreme Court Justice who is from Glendale but grew up in part in South Pasadena, is once again among...
Possible Settlement | South Pasadena Resident May Get Some Justice
The City of South Pasadena and resident Alison Smith last week reported “significant progress” in efforts to settle a bitter dispute in which both...
New Mayor | Cacciotti Takes Over as Mayor as City’s To-Do List Expands
District 4 City Council Member Michael Cacciotti, the longest-serving South Pasadena City Council Member, was elected Mayor Wednesday on a unanimous vote of his...
Increased Crime Along Transit Lines | South Pasadena Opposes “Defunding Law Enforcement”
The South Pasadena City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a letter opposing a proposal before the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority that, according to...
Firefighter Reinstatement | City of South Pasadena Delaying, Haggling Over Court Ordered Payment
Nearly six months after the California Supreme Court put the kibosh on South Pasadena’s five-year battle to defend its illegal termination of the president...
Public Works Director on Leave Effective Immediately | South Pasadena
Shahid Abbas, who has served as South Pasadena Public Works Director since 2019, is on leave and Deputy Public Works Director Harold Theodore (“Ted”)...
City Urged to Forego Recovery of Tax Revenue Scammed by SCE
Seeking to come to terms with a mixed appeal court ruling, South Pasadena City Manager Arminé Chaparyan this week is asking the City Council...
City to Sell $352,000 of Bonds
Following a recommendation from its Finance Commission, the South Pasadena City Council on Oct. 20 voted 4 to 1 to amend its investment policy...
BLM Protesters Sue City of South Pasadena Over Police Treatment
Two South Pasadenans who say their rights were violated by South Pasadena police officer have filed a lawsuit against the city and five of...
Police Department Affirms Plans for ‘Organizational Assessment’
In what appears to be a response to public pressure, the South Pasadena Police Department last Friday announced an expansion to the scope of...
“Unpermitted” SCE Utility Work in City’s Crosshairs
"Unpermitted", noise-ordinance-violating utility work around town by Southern California Edison is a “recurring” problem that “is absolutely getting more serious,” according to Mayor Diana...
New Caltrans Houses Bill | Concerns Over Fair Process
With the Sept. 28 governor’s approval of SB 381, the city on Wednesday sought to get rolling on its ambitious plan to use its...
Caltrans Properties | Governor Newsom Signs Landmark South Pasadena Housing Bill
In a major victory for South Pasadena Mayor Diana Mahmud, Governor Newsom on Tuesday signed SB 381, a city-sponsored bill authored by Sen. Anthony...
City Council | Community Advocates Push for Racial Bias Assessment
Public speakers on Wednesday demanded the city include racial bias as part of an assessment City Manager Arminé Chaparyan intends to commission on the...
Caltrans Properties | City’s Plan to Acquire Homes Now Requires Governor Approval
The City of South Pasadena’s grand plan to take control of Caltrans’ properties in town is on the verge of fruition after a flurry...
$80 Million Credit Deal Signed | CPA to Add More Solar
The Clean Power Alliance this month added over 300 megawatts of solar generating capacity to its growing profile of long-term renewable power resources. Directors...
Animal Commission | City Council to Discuss Future at Next Meeting
The South Pasadena City Council on Wednesday will take on the controversial subject of the future of its moribund Animal Commission. Staff has not...
South Pasadena Care Center Lawsuit | New Claims Allege Enrichment Scheme Injured Residents
In the latest lawsuit filed against the South Pasadena Care Center, the family of the late Michael Steven Paz says he suffered “injuries and...
