City Leaders, Tournament of Roses Officials Meet

The Pasadena City Council and Tournament of Roses officials faced off in a historic get-together Tuesday, trading ideas and criticisms on the selection of the tournament’s queen, the costs of maintaining the Rose Bowl and the ethnic composition of the tournament organization’s leadership.

Officials from the tournament organization and City Hall have met often on specific issues, but this was the first time they had met to discuss broad policy issues, officials said.

Councilman Isaac Richard criticized the tournament for not choosing more minorities as Rose queens. Vice Mayor Rick Cole urged the organization to include more minorities in top leadership positions. Council members also suggested that the tournament organization should expect to pay more to modernize the 70-year-old Rose Bowl.

Former tournament President Robert Cheney said the Tournament of Roses was the only festival of its kind that did not require subsidies from the city. The parade has brought the city annual profits in recent years of about $500,000, he said.