Pasadena Design Commission to Review Design of New Six-Story Halstead Street Multi-Family Residential Project

Pasadena’s Design Commission on Tuesday will discuss an application for Consolidated Design Review for a new six-story, 48-unit multi-family residential project at 170 N. Halstead Street. 

The project site is a vacant 12,537-square-foot lot located on the east side of N. Halstead Street between E. Foothill Boulevard and the 210 Freeway. 

Surrounding properties include commercial, office, institutional and multi-family residential buildings ranging from one to 10 stories in height and surface parking lots along E. Foothill Blvd., as well as a parking structure adjacent to the Sierra Madre Villa “A” Line Station. 

The northern edge of the site adjoins a Pasadena Department of Water & Power facility and Fire Station #37, which is considered a historic resource at 3430 E. Foothill Blvd. Abutting the southern property line is a self-storage facility. 

The Design Commission recently approved a new mixed-use project consisting of three six-story residential buildings with a total of 233 units, a new five-story parking structure with ground-floor commercial space, and the renovation of the existing Panda Inn restaurant on a parcel immediately east of the project site. 

The historic Stuart Pharmaceuticals Building, built in 1958, stands at 3360 E. Foothill Blvd. near the site.

According to plans submitted to the Department of Planning and Community Development, the proposed multi-family residential building will be located close to all property lines with pedestrian paths of travel provided along all sides. 

Primary pedestrian access to the site and building will be from N. Halstead Street through a central lobby. 

The building will have onsite amenities that include a leasing office, a community room, a laundry room, and a children’s play area. All common spaces are on the ground floor and have direct access to the street. 

The programming and circulation of the building will fully engage the pedestrian realm and activate the street through a seamless transition. 

As planned, the building will have a strong orientation towards N. Halstead Street, with a ground floor façade and entry that connects to and adjoins the sidewalk, providing easy access from the street.

The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. in Council Chambers.