Central Library Retrofit Moves Into Basement Footings and Ceiling Work

Construction at Pasadena’s Central Library is progressing on schedule, with crews advancing concrete and footing work in the basement and building scaffolded platforms to reach the historic ceilings, according to Tim McDonald, the city’s director of libraries and information services.

The 1927 library, designed by Myron Hunt and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been closed since May 3, 2021, because of seismic risk from its unreinforced masonry construction. Pasadena voters approved Measure PL, a $195 million bond for the retrofit, in November 2024, and the schedule the city announced in March calls for completion in 2028.

Over the next four to six weeks, concrete slab pouring and most of the footing work in the lower level will be completed, according to the city. Footings have been poured in the Circulation Hall ahead of the installation of new vertical steel reinforcement, and shear wall and footing work will continue for the next several months.

Three scaffolded work platforms, known as dance floors, now stand in the Children’s Room in the southwest wing, the Humanities Wing to the southeast and the Reading Wing to the northeast. In the Great Hall, crews installed a raised floor about 12 inches above the historic cork flooring to protect it and allow a fourth platform. The platforms let crews remove ceiling finishes and prepare seismic work that will connect the walls to the roof structure through rebar and concrete reinforcements.

Unreinforced masonry buildings have performed poorly in earthquakes, and building codes changed to prohibit them after the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, according to the California Geological Survey. A 1986 state law declared the hazard they pose unacceptable and requires local governments in the state’s highest seismic zone to inventory such buildings and set retrofit standards, according to the California Seismic Safety Commission.

The City Council approved Phase 2 construction March 2 under an amended contract with PCL Construction Services, Inc., not to exceed $186,186,155 and carrying a 10% local economic impact commitment. The city is using the construction manager at-risk method, under which PCL was selected in July 2025 for preconstruction and selective demolition. Gruen Associates led the design, with a historic preservation consultant and a mayor-appointed technical oversight committee.

Beyond seismic strengthening, the work includes selective demolition, removal of hazardous materials and full replacement of the mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, according to Gruen, which said the library held about 300,000 items and served about 1,000 visitors a day before it closed. About 150 people attended a ceremonial groundbreaking Dec. 12, 2025.

Measure PL required two-thirds approval and received 72.4% of the vote, with 44,835 yes votes and 17,074 no votes, according to city election records. A pre-election FM3 Research survey had found nearly 7 in 10 voters would support the bond, according to the Urban Libraries Council. Janice Seagall, president of the Friends of the Pasadena Public Library at the time, said the result recognized “the work of so many people in our community.”

Carved above the library’s entrance are the words “Be made whole by books, as by great spaces and the Stars.” Project updates are posted at https://www.cityofpasadena.net/Library/Central-Library-Earthquake-Retrofit/.