With a court’s approval in hand, Pasadena on Friday, July 10, began inspections at John Muir High, a day after after inspectors were turned away during the local school district’s project to fell trees rooted in soil found to be contaminated after the Eaton fire.
The inspections Friday afternoon were the latest moment in emerging tension between the city and the Pasadena Unified School District over the fate of trees on campuses. At issue is whether the district can continue its project, citing the need to cut down trees as part of a broader project to clean up contaminated soil.
Pasadena issued a series of stop-work orders last week and this week at district campuses, pointing to its Tree Protection Ordinance, which is intended to ensure that the city’s overall canopy and protected trees are not impacted by the project. But the district has argued in a letter to the city that the stop-work orders are not justified — an argument that played itself out on Thursday when city inspectors showed up at Muir only to be told to leave the property.
The city promptly took its effort to a judge on Thursday.
“Despite the City of Pasadena’s numerous attempts to cooperatively come to a resolution regarding removal of trees from several Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) sites,” city spokesperson Lisa Derderian said in a statement, “PUSD has continued the removal of trees at various locations in violation of posted stop work orders.”
The city was granted an inspection warrant by the Los Angeles County Superior Court, prompting Friday inspections at the John Muir Campus, where district crews had been working this week.
Inspectors were on campus Friday afternoon with a certified arborist to determine which trees are protected and the extent to which any damage or removals have occurred, according to the city.
“The City is prepared to conduct this inspection work in an expeditious manner and supports the goal of returning students to a safe campus as soon as possible,” the city’s statement said. “The City’s goal has been, and continues to be, to work cooperatively with PUSD in mediating this process to continue inspections. The health and safety of students and others is of the highest importance, and the City’s rules and laws must be followed to ensure protection of the public safety and welfare.”
Whether campuses can open fully for the school year fell into question this week after district officials suggested that city and community pushback over the district’s effort threatens a “critical timeline” in which to ensure that campuses open on time.
In a Thursday statement, district officials acknowledged the work at John Muir High School Early College Magnet, where “PUSD continued work necessary to remove contaminated soil from impacted areas of campus.”
“This work included the removal of non-protected trees in areas where soil removal is required,” the district added. “No protected native or mature trees were removed today, and wildlife biologists confirmed there was no migratory nesting bird activity before work proceeded.”
That statement came after an altercation Thursday, where a group of unidentified people “entered or attempted” to enter a work zone at Muir, where they were not authorized.
“One individual became involved in a physical altercation with an on-site Pasadena City College personnel, and law enforcement was contacted,” the district said, referencing PCC, which has a campus at Muir. “Students participating in summer programming at John Muir remained safely in their programs, and there was no disruption to student learning.”
“PUSD honors and respects peaceful, lawful expression,” the statement said. “We also have a responsibility to maintain safe school campuses and secure work areas, particularly when environmental removal is underway. Trespassing into restricted campus work zones creates safety risks and cannot be allowed.”
The district said it turned away inspectors on Thursday because the removal work was being conducted on district property in conjunction with the state’s Department of Toxic Substances Control. Officials noted the city’s request to inspect was being addressed through district and city leadership, and legal counsel.
“PUSD has been in ongoing communication with the City,” the district said, “and has shared information regarding the District’s testing, findings, and removal plans, including the District’s July 6 letter.”
That letter, from the district’s lawyers, reiterated that the removal was necessary to replace the impacted soil and to ensure campus safety.
It also said the city’s stop-work orders “do not identify what the specific violation purportedly is, when the specific violation supposedly occurred or who observed the alleged violation. This deprives the District of its due process rights to be specifically notified of what the District is claimed to have done.”
District leaders first announced the tree removal effort in May, citing a project mandated by the state’s Department of Toxic Substances Control, while students are out of school, and seeking to be done by the time the new academic year begins in the fall, officials said, looking to reassure concerned neighbors about the project. Officials have also said families in the district have raised concerns over soil safety on campuses.
“Any time we’re moving toxic waste there is concern from the community on how we do that,” Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco said when the removal project was announced. “We want to reassure the community that it’s totally safe and regulated and nothing will be flying out of the tucks on the truck routes.”
District officials couched the $6.6 million effort in terms of “restoring outdoor learning spaces” at 11 campuses and other sites impacted by the Eaton fire in January 2025.
Testing last year found fire-related toxins in soil at the sites, which exceeded state screening levels, a finding that prompted the district to close off the areas where the contamination was found.
The substances detected in these initial tests included lead, arsenic, chromium, Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and dioxins/furans.
The sample collected with the highest level of lead was taken from Blair High School at 253 milligrams per kilogram. That sample was taken from next to the tennis courts, near Garfield Avenue, next to the 110 Freeway.
Blanco noted in May that it would take ingestion of the toxins to be the most hazardous.
Soil issues have become a point of concern in the area, not just at schools but also in residential areas, as parcels and lots are cleared from the ash and debris left in the wake of the fire, which destroyed more than 9,000 structures in Altadena, Pasadena and Sierra Madre.
That concern fueled concerns over how much soil the Army Corps of Engineers was removing as they cleared sites, and how much was being removed under this summer’s project at the district.
Michael Dunning, director of facilities, maintenance, operations, and transportation, said the project this summer would remove up to 4 feet deep of soil.
Work over the summer was planned to take place at:
- Blair High School.
- Former Cleveland Elementary School site.
- Field Elementary.
- Franklin Elementary site.
- Jefferson Dual Language Children’s Center.
- John Muir High School Early College Magnet.
- Longfellow Elementary Magnet, Octavia E. Butler Magnet.
- San Rafael Elementary.
- Washington Elementary STEM Magnet School.
- PUSD Education Center.
All told, 5,000 trees are on district sites. The goal, Blanco said, is to replace the trees with new shaded canopies.
The suggestion of a delayed campus readiness over the tree issue came as Julia Butterfly Hill, a nationally renowned environmental activist, visited Pasadena this week, including the Muir campus on Thursday.
She told activists who have been protesting the removal project to “stand strong.”
The city has released health guidance for schools and early childhood centers. You can find that here.