Allendale Library to Re-Open For Public Use on Tuesday

Pasadena’s Allendale Branch Library is set to reopen to the public on Tuesday, Jan. 3 after successful completion of its Seismic Retrofit and Roof Replacement project.

The library was closed when work started in August 2022, and patrons were redirected to either the Hill Avenue Branch, at 55 S. Hill Avenue, or the San Rafael Branch, at 1240 Nithsdale Road for their library needs.

Public Works Director Tony Olmos said the seismic retrofit work has been completed, and the Allendale Branch is reopening for normal operations hours starting on Tuesday.

Seismic Retrofit of Pasadena Libraries 

Allendale was the second library to be closed for seismic repairs. 

In May 2021, city officials also closed the nearly 100-year-old Pasadena Central Library on Walnut Street near City Hall after a structural assessment revealed that most of the building is made up of unreinforced masonry-bearing walls that leaves the building vulnerable to seismic activity. 

The Central Library remains closed and there is no estimated date for the facility to reopen.

In November, the Department of Public Works published a Request for Proposals for the Central Library Seismic Renovation Project which, including preparatory engineering work, could cost the City up to $120 million.

As part of the seismic retrofit effort, the City will restore the building while maintaining its historic architectural significance. Designed by Myron Hunt and H.C. Chambers in 1924, the Central Library was the first building completed in Pasadena’s historic Civic Center Plan and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Allendale Branch Library 

The Allendale Branch Library, located at 1130 South Marengo Ave., was a former isolation hospital in the 1920s until it was remodeled and opened as a library in 1951. The adobe ranch-style building features a fireplace, wide windows with one door opening onto a fenced patio and the other to a picnic park area with playground.

Although it lacks a separate meeting room, the Allendale Branch Library is a unique and exemplary neighborhood center, combining school, library, park and recreational resources.

The small branch has over 41,000 items in its collection. It has a strong current popular fiction collection including bestsellers, science fiction, and romances. Additional strengths of the book collection are current biographies, paperback classics, and a growing young adult collection, including Cliffs notes, financial aid guides, and college guides.

In 2014, Allendale debuted a special culinary collection.

Allendale’s location, adjacent to the Blair Middle and High School campuses, make it a popular place for kids of all ages. In addition to its general community audience, Allendale offers many services and events geared especially to kids age 12 to 17.

For more information, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/library/branches/allendale-library.