New Marriott Hotel Project in Pasadena ‘Tops Out,’ Marking Milestone for New Marriott Property

Construction of a new AC Hotel by Marriott in Pasadena has reached a milestone with the building now at its full height. The project, located at 550 E. Colorado Blvd. at the corner of Madison Ave., is transforming a former surface parking lot into a modern hotel complex.

Welcome Group, Inc., the developer behind the project, began construction in mid-2023. The new podium-type building will feature 194 guest rooms and 5,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space, according to plans submitted to local authorities.

A rooftop bar is also included in the design, adding an attractive amenity for future guests and visitors. WATG (which stands for Wimberly, Allison, Tong and Goo) served as the project’s architect for entitlement, while AXIS Architecture is now acting as the hotel’s architect of record.

Renderings of the AC Hotel reveal an exterior design incorporating stone, faux wood, and glass elements. R.D. Olson, the general contractor for the project, expects completion in 2025.

This Pasadena location will join other AC Hotels in the Los Angeles area, including a 347-room establishment near the Convention Center in Downtown. Welcome Group has previously developed a similar 180-key AC Hotel in El Segundo.

The project’s history dates back to June 2021, when plans were changed from a previously approved five-story medical office building. That month, Welcome Group submitted an application for Changes to an Approved Project to modify the development to a six-story hotel with ground-level commercial space.

At the time, the plans described the project as “AC Hotel Pasadena,” featuring 194 rooms and 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space. The project required a Conditional Use Permit, which underwent review by the Planning Department.

The development also needed approval from the Design Commission for changes to the previously approved design. Planning Department staff and the applicant presented an overview of the project history and previous designs at a Design Commission meeting on June 22, 2021.

WATG was contracted as the project architect according to the initial plans submitted in 2021. The shift to AXIS Architecture as the architect of record reflects changes in the project’s development.