Welcome to Making Housing & Community Happen!
The right to return to one's own home or neighborhood seems basic, but it often needs advocacy. That's why we have decided to work on initiatives aimed at helping people displaced from Altadena and Pasadena, whether by the recent wildfire or by gentrification over the years, to return to their community if they so choose. Such efforts around the country in recent years have been known as "Right to Return" initiatives.
"Right to Return" in Pasadena includes can include initiatives such as:
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Advocating to prioritize new affordable housing for those who have been displaced, using a local preference policy that sets aside 20% of new affordable housing for those displaced from Pasadena in the last decade--a policy we advocated for (see below for more details).
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Addressing the construction of the 710 "stub" and 210 Freeway, which destroyed a vibrant Black district and displaced nearly 3,000 people, mostly people of color. 50+ acres of the incomplete 710 Freeway have been returned by Cal Trans to Pasadena. This land can be used for affordable housing and reparations through the Reconnect Community initiative.
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Reviving an historic Black Main Street on North Fair Oaks.
Genee Johnson tells the moving story about how she and her family were displaced from Pasadena because they could no longer afford the rent.
