Newsletters

September 2024

Hi South Pas Active Friends,

  Fall is here, and South Pas Active is excited to gear up for the election season, advocating for safer, more complete streets, and working on new partnerships with school PTAs.

Endorsements for City Council Election

South Pas Active is proud to partner with the advocacy group Streets For All to endorse candidates for City Council in the 2024 General Election. We circulated a questionnaire to all five candidates running this election. The responses were reviewed by SPAS and SFA to see who is most likely to advance safe and accessible streets for all users. Those endorsements are now public.

In District 1, we had excellent responses from the two candidates, Evelyn Zneimer and Omari Ferguson. Both candidates understand how our city's built environment is a critical part of a vibrant, healthy community. Mr Ferguson comes at this from the perspective of an engineer and parent of young children, while Mayor Zneimer knows the city's processes and history. It was a difficult decision, but we placed a high value on the actions Mayor Zneimer took to preserve the bike lane on Grand Avenue and overcome the misguided resistance from a few residents. We see that decision as a watershed moment for our city and hope that it leads to similar action in the future. For those reasons, SFA and SPAS chose to endorse Mayor Evelyn Zneimer for city council in District 1.

In District 2, we considered responses from Sheila Rossi and Charlie Lu. Again, both candidates had good responses to our questionnaire, but we found Ms. Rossi's answers more detailed and personal. She shared a story about how traffic violence changed her life and how that motivates her interest in making our streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists. For those reasons, we decided to endorse Sheila Rossi for city council in District 2.

Get Your Kids Rolling at the Bike Clinic!

Is your child ready to explore South Pasadena on two wheels? Want your child to learn how to ride a bike but not sure where to take them or how to teach them? Join us for a free bike clinic at Marengo Elementary School on Saturday, October 5th from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. In partnership with Marengo PTA and the DUDES, our skilled instructors will guide children of all ages through the basics of safe and confident cycling. Space is filling up, so RSVP at https://marengopta.org/bike-clinic soon.

If you are on the more experienced side of the cycling spectrum, please consider volunteering or loaning equipment to the cause! Email us at info@southpasactive.org if you are interested in helping out.

Join the Week Without Driving Challenge: September 30th - October 6th!

Looking for a way to challenge yourself and contribute to a cleaner, greener South Pasadena? Take the pledge to try going car-free during the Week Without Driving from September 30th to October 6th. About 30% of Americans life car-free due to their age or ability status and their needs are often invisible. By trying to make more of our trips by foot, public transit, bike, foot, we can learn about their perspective and make the world a more equitable and sustainable place. We will be promoting this with #weekwithoutdriving on Instagram and welcome your stories and contributions there or by email at info@southpasactive.org.

Visit https://southpasactive.org and https://weekwithoutdriving.org to learn more and take the Week Without Driving pledge!

Stay Active,

South Pas Active