Reinventing Pasadena’s Downtown

A bright morning sun cut sharp lines across The Paseo on Wednesday as a small delegation of state and local officials threaded its walkways, stopping frequently to peer into storefronts and survey the open-air mall’s refreshed plazas. The stroll was part of a broader fact-finding swing through California’s commercial corridors led by Assemblymember Matt Haney, chair of the State Legislature’s Downtown Recovery Committee, who has now visited 15 city centers in search of what is working — and what isn’t — in the long shadow of the pandemic, and locally, the Eaton Fire. 

Haney was joined by Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo and Assemblymember John Harabedian, who helped frame the tour as both a listening session and a signal to business owners that Sacramento is paying attention. 

“We want to make sure that business owners, especially our retail owners, know that California is open for business,” Harabedian said, citing the strain of federal tariffs and “negative economic policies” he argued, have hit small retailers hardest. The day, he said, was meant to foster “a dialogue between the state and the business owners” while underscoring Pasadena’s importance to the state’s economic fabric. 

For Haney, whose San Francisco district faces its own slate of vacant storefronts and unpredictable foot traffic, Pasadena represents something of a counterpoint. Downtown’s sales revenue and visitor activity, he noted, have returned to — and in some areas surpassed — pre-pandemic levels. “Old Pasadena is a bright spot,” he said, even as the challenges remain familiar: filling retail gaps, encouraging office attendance, investing in safety and cleanliness, and “getting out of the way” when businesses seek to adapt to new consumer patterns. 

The tour’s local guide, Anna Grazioli of the Onni Group, owners of The Paseo, pointed out the steady churn of improvements underway at the longtime shopping destination. A full repaint, new green walls, overhead string lights, and stadium seating in the central plaza have reshaped the mall’s look and feel. New tenants — including an escape room attraction, a bookstore, a Paris Baguette outpost, Wushiland Boba, and Hawaii Fluid Art, an interactive art studio — are meant to draw residents who no longer come downtown daily for work. 

As Mayor Gordo pointed out, Pasadena continues to grapple with economic uncertainty tied to the displacement of Altadena residents after the Eaton Fire and broader national instability. That volatility, he said, reinforces the need for partnerships that stretch past city limits. “We are encouraging our residents to shop local, support our local businesses,” Gordo said, adding that the city is leaning on state leaders to help sustain a “vibrant business environment.” 

Gordo was also quick to mention that the state’s moves are a direct reaction to inaction from the federal government. 

Haney echoed that the path to recovery is unlikely to look like the past. Downtowns must diversify who they attract — shoppers, office workers, and residents — and cities must reinvest in their public spaces to make them feel welcoming. “We can’t just keep on doing the same thing we’ve been doing,” he said, gesturing toward the Paseo’s main plaza. “We’ve got to be flexible.” 

Wednesday’s walk offered no sweeping prescriptions yet. But it did suggest that the future of California’s downtowns may hinge on small, steady acts of reinvention — like fresh paint, fuller storefronts, and shoppers pacing slowly through it all.