VIcMillan, Acquanette (Netta)
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Christine Reeder
Monday, July 13, 2026 1:08 PM
PublicComment-AutoResponse
July 13 City Council discussion on new taxes
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Hello Pasadena City Council Members,
It appears that the City of Pasadena does not manage their budget very well and needs to ask the residents to bear new taxes to balance the budget. Pasadena Water and Power is now increasing rates by 22% in 3 stages and your discussion today will consider a parcel tax. Pasadena residents are now paying a library special property tax, Central Library Earthquake 195 million bond tax, 2 PUSD taxes, increased parking rates and at today's meeting you are considering 5 new taxes. The parcel tax will make current residents consider moving out of Pasadena and is a huge hardship for normal residents. When will you consider the middle income and lower residents of Pasadena? You need to examine how the city budget is being currently spent before adding new taxes. Looking forward to your discussions and thought process to see if reasonable and sound thinking.
Thank you. A 50 year resident of Pasadena.
Sent from my iPhone
07/13/2026
Item 16
McMillan, Acquanette (Netta)
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Monday, July 13, 2026 1:31 PM
PublicComment-AutoResponse
Item 16: transfer tax
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Dear Mayor and City Council members,
I am glad that Pasadena is looking into measures to enhance city revenue during this difficult time. When Culver City went through a budget crisis five years ago, the City Council decided to put a transfer tax on the ballot. The revenue went into the General Fund, but a percentage was set aside for affordable housing. We talked with city officials about this transfer tax, and I suggest that you direct staff to do the same. We learned that the transfer tax has significantly impacted Culver City's revenue. In its first year, it generated $17 million, exceeding initial projections by about $15 million, accordinci to Culver City Crossroads. While revenue for the 2023-2024 fiscal year was lower than initially anticipated, coming in around $7.4 million, it still contributed a substantial amount to the city's finances. Culver City's population is 40,000, which much smaller than Pasadena's, so we could expect to raise considerably more funds if we had a similar transfer tax.
As a person of faith, I urge you to prioritize the needs of our unhoused residents for supportive housing and a year-round shelter-something that this Council supports. A year-round shelter doesn't work for many unhoused people, such as women and the mentally ill, but congregate shelters can help to get some people off the street and into a place where services can be provided. It will require not only start-up funds but also ongoing case management to ensure that residents are given the support they need to become permanently housed. Trinity Lutheran's safe parking program and All Saint's Safe Haven program have helped dozens of unhoused people to be permanently housed because they have contracted with Friends In Deed and Union Station to provide case management and housing navigators. These services are essential to the success of a year-round shelter.
Additionally, I urge you to set aside funds for incentivize developers to build more permanent supportive housing.
As long as over 500 people are unhoused and over 300 living on our streets in Pasadena, we have a moral responsibility to provide funding to house what the late Councilmember John Kennedy liked to call "the least of these," referencing Matthew 25 ("Whatever you do for the least of these my brothers and sisters, you do for Me." ) Councilmember Cole has argued convincingly that we could effectively end homelessness in out city. Let's make sure we provide funding to make this happen.
Anthony Manousos
District 1
Co-founder of Making Housing and Community Happen
07/13/2026
Item 16
McMillan, Acquanette (Netta)
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Jill Shook
Monday, July 13,20261:31 PM
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RE: Comment for July 13 #16 transfer tax.
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Dear Pasadena City Council,
Shortly after Bill Huang begin working for the City of Pasadena in 2009, there was a requirement that we have several workshops a year- one of those early workshops focused on local funding dedicated funding sources for affordable housing— we discussed transfer tax, linkage fees and more. He was a strong proponent of transfer taxes as we are as an organization. We met early on with ULA as they were planning the transfer tax and have followed it closely with the ups and downs, but overall it has been very successful with $552.8 million raised in 2025, and after admin fees, 70% for affordable housing.
Additionally, as we have watched the Police budget grow by 10 million a year recently, during which crime has decreased, I can't help but remember how several of passed Police chief had made it clear that affordable housing is one of the best deterrents for crime. And it would certainly prevent many calls to police regarding homelessness. We the mindset of ending homelessness, or at least a functional zero model like Redondo Beach.
But we can't build that without the housing and the needed funding for it, especially considering federal cuts. A local funding source is essential and transfer tax should be put on the ballot by the city council as soon as possible with a very high percentage of the funding going toward affordable housing, especially for those experiencing homelessness.
Sincerely, Jill Shook, with Making Housing and Community Happen Makinghousinghappen.org 07/13/2026
Item 16
McMillan, Acquanette (Netta)
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Ethan Haleblian <[email protected]>
Monday, July 13, 2026 2:06 PM
PublicComment-AutoResponse
Transfer Tax for Affordable Housing - Agenda Item 16
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Council Member,
To the Mayor and Members of the Pasadena City Council,
I have lived in Pasadena for all my life. I strongly support the establishment of a transfer tax to fund the development of affordable housing, not just as a general funding source. Such a tax has already been explored as a funding source for affordable housing in Pasadena's hlousing Element. Other similar transfer taxes have seen success in Culver City and LA City, the latter of which has raised $1 .3 billion over 3 years.
If the transfer tax is implemented incrementally, it would only affect owners of ultra luxury properties, not average homeowners and renters (which make up the bulk of residents in Pasadena). As the cost of living continues to rise, coupled with the devastation caused by the Eaton Fire, affordable housing is needed now more than ever. For these reasons, I support a transfer tax as a method of funding affordable housing
Sincerely,
-Ethan Haleblian
Ethan Haleblian
Pasadena, California 91107
07/13/2026
Item 16
McMillan, Acquanette (Netta)
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Lisa Haleblian <[email protected]>
Monday, July 13, 2026 2:15 PM
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our city needs a new property transfer tax to fund affordable housing - agenda item 16 [ l ] CAUTION: This email was delivered from the Internet. Do not click links or open attachments unless you know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button (PAB). For more information about the PAB view article "KB0011474" on the DolT portal.
Council Member,
To the Mayor and Members of the Pasadena City Council,
I have been a resident and property owner in Pasadena for over 25 years. The need for affordable housing has never been more urgent, especially after the Eaton fire. Even as a landlord, we see the need for more housing that the average person can afford. If we were to start over, my family would not be able to afford a home here and I worry that my children will not be able to raise their families here as well.
Therefore, I strongly encourage you to place a property transfer tax dedicated to affordable housing and homelessness prevention on the ballot.
Pasadena urgently needs a stable source of funding for affordable housing. A transfer tax on highly valued properties is a reasonable solution to an ever increasing societal problem.
I encourage the Council to give Pasadena voters the opportunity to decide whether to create a dedicated local funding source for affordable housing and homelessness prevention.
Thank you,
Lisa Haleblian,
Pasadena homeownerand landlord
Lisa l-1aleblian
Pasadena , California 91107
07/13/2026
Item 16
McMillan, Acquanette (Netta)
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Herag Haleblian <[email protected]>
Monday, July 13, 2026 2:19 PM
PublicComment-AutoResponse
YES to a transfer tax to fund affordable housing - agenda item 16 [ I ] CAUTION: This email was delivered from the Internet. Do not click links or open attachments unless you know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button (PAB). For more information about the PAB view article "KB0011474" on the DolT portal.
Council Member,
Dear Mayor Gordo and Members of the Pasadena City Council, I strongly support putting a Transfer Tax on the ballot as an additional source of revenue for our city. Further, I would urge you to designate this money to be used for Affordable Housing, as you proposed in the h-lousing Element that was submitted to the State of California.
While Pasadena has made great strides in reducing homelessness, much more remains to be done, and increasing affordable housing directly addresses this issue. Affordable housing is especially crucial to seniors, who are on fixed incomes. Rent control is helpful, but the annual increase in Social Security does not always cover the increase in rent. More than 51 percent of renter households currently pay over the recommended 30 percent of their income on rent.
Affordable housing relieves this burden.
Transfer taxes, as used in other California cities, affects only the owners of luxury housing, and thus does not burden the average homeowner nor the 58 percent of households that are renters. This would be a great way to make Pasadena a more liveable city.
I am a landlord and own property in Pasadena. I'm concerned about providing affordable housing to our next generation.
Herag hialeblian
Pasadena, California 91107
07/13/2026
Item 16