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South Pasadena to merge Emtek and Public Works commissions into new Public Works Infrastructure Commission
Summary
City staff told the Mobility and Transportation Infrastructure Commission that the City Council has directed an ordinance to merge the Emtek and Public Works commissions into a new Public Works Infrastructure Commission, move the meeting night, and create community working groups focused on corridors and long-term infrastructure finance.
At its Feb. 18 meeting, the South Pasadena Mobility and Transportation Infrastructure Commission heard staff say the City Council has directed an ordinance to consolidate the Emtek and Public Works commissions into a single Public Works Infrastructure Commission.
Ted, a city Public Works staff member, told commissioners the consolidation is on the council calendar for a second reading on Feb. 19 and described how the transition will work. "The council has given us direction to consolidate the Emtek and Public Works commissions," he said, explaining that members of the existing Emtek commission will continue into the new body and that current Public Works commissioners with remaining terms will be invited to join. Mayor Braun said the merged body will start with nine members and transition to seven members in 2026 as some terms expire.
City staff said the new commission will meet on a different night to reduce packet and meeting overlap with Council. The commission's regular meeting night is expected to move from the current third-Tuesday date to the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m.; staff asked commissioners to keep March 12 open as the tentative first meeting date under the new ordinance. Commissioner Dunlap noted the new body will elect its chair at the first meeting after the ordinance takes effect.
The consolidation does more than change membership and meeting dates. Officials described an expanded advisory role: the Public Works Infrastructure Commission will oversee transportation projects and non-transportation public-works work, including capital projects and some operations work previously handled separately. Ted described a staff-led "transportation corridors working group" that will be established to bring community members, non-Brown-Act input and stakeholders into detailed discussions on selected corridors. "We want to bring groups in, folks that have real expertise or vision for transportation concepts in the community and have a working group discussion and then report out," Ted said. Mayor Braun said the working group will focus specifically on the North–South corridor (including coordination with Pasadena and Alhambra after the I-710 changes) and the Huntington Drive corridor, where neighboring cities have proposed projects.
Commissioners asked how the working group will relate to the new commission and whether commissioners will be members. Ted and Mayor Braun emphasized the working group will not be a Brown Act advisory board; it is a staff-led, volunteer group intended to broaden public engagement and report back to the commission. Council member Ferguson likewise described the group as a way to enable more fluid, field-based outreach: "Having this working group format will allow for there to be things to be much more fluid," she said, noting it reduces the operational hurdles for field events and short-notice gatherings.
Commissioners also discussed the proposed finance infrastructure working group, a separate staff proposal to develop long-range financing strategies for large capital needs (examples cited by Mayor Braun included a library/community center, golf course upgrades and major street needs). Mayor Braun estimated large unmet needs across projects and said the city plans to prioritize hiring a finance director after the new city manager starts in March.
Why it matters: consolidating the two advisory bodies changes how the city will collect public input and advise Council on public-works and transportation priorities. The change also alters meeting timing, committee composition and how staff will solicit community feedback on corridor projects and long-range financing.
Next steps and outstanding items: staff said the ordinance is scheduled for second reading at City Council on Feb. 19; if approved, the merged commission is tentatively scheduled to meet March 12, and commissioners will elect a chair at the new commission's first meeting. Staff will publish a revised meeting schedule and further guidance about the corridor working group and volunteer recruitment.
