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Pasadena Today
By the People, for the People
Pasadena Pushes for Measurable Local Hiring on Public Projects
City Council takes action to ensure public investments translate into real jobs for local residents.
Published on Feb. 11, 2026
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Pasadena is taking steps to ensure that its public construction projects result in measurable local hiring outcomes, rather than just outreach efforts. The city has paused a major library renovation project to develop an enforceable local hiring plan, setting a precedent for future developments. Pasadena recognizes that local hiring must be defined, required, tracked, and publicly reported to be meaningful, rather than treated as a voluntary or symbolic gesture.
Why it matters
Pasadena is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in public construction, much of it funded by voter-approved bonds. These investments were intended to generate community benefit in the form of good-paying jobs and economic stability for local residents. If local residents are not working on these projects, that promise is not being fulfilled.
The details
Pasadena has adopted a local hiring ordinance, but too often outreach has substituted for actual hiring outcomes. Contractors frequently hold community meetings, job fairs, and other engagement efforts, but do not report on how many Pasadena residents were hired, in which trades, for how many hours, or what share of total labor was local. The city is now requiring workforce utilization plans, local hire targets, residency verification, certified payroll review, and regular public reporting to ensure local hiring is measurable and enforceable.
- On February 11, 2026, Pasadena Now published an op-ed by Ron Matthews, a local construction professional, calling for the city to take action on local hiring.
- The Pasadena City Council recently decided to pause a major Central Library Seismic Retrofit project in order to develop a written, enforceable local hiring plan.
The players
Pasadena City Council
The governing body of the City of Pasadena, California, responsible for setting policies and overseeing city operations.
Ron Matthews
A Pasadena-based construction professional and local hiring coordinator focused on turning public investment into measurable jobs for local residents.
What they’re saying
“Pasadena has both the policy tools and the public mandate to ensure its investments translate into real jobs for local residents.”
— Ron Matthews, Construction Professional and Local Hiring Coordinator (pasadenanow.com)
“Local hiring means Pasadena residents actually working on Pasadena projects.”
— Ron Matthews, Construction Professional and Local Hiring Coordinator (pasadenanow.com)
What’s next
The Pasadena City Council will decide on Tuesday whether to approve the written, enforceable local hiring plan for the Central Library Seismic Retrofit project.
The takeaway
Pasadena is setting a precedent for ensuring that public investments in construction projects result in measurable local hiring outcomes, rather than just outreach efforts. This approach can serve as a model for other cities looking to translate public spending into real economic benefits for local residents.
