A sleepy 1960s office campus at 600 N. Rosemead Boulevard could soon swap cubicles for kitchens, as nonprofit Elysian Housing pitches a 132-unit, 100% affordable apartment community in East Pasadena. Early plans shown to the city’s Design Commission combine a rehab of the existing two-story office building, which would hold 52 apartments, with a new five-story structure adding 81 more homes. All of that would sit on top of just 55 on-site parking spaces for the entire property.
What’s Proposed
The project would convert the existing two-story, 42,518-square-foot office building into 52 apartments and add a new five-story, 75,514-square-foot building with 81 units, for a total of 132 homes, according to the City of Pasadena staff report. The roughly 93,759-square-foot site would keep the main office structure but demolish an attached two-story garage to clear the way for the new podium building. The application states that State Density Bonus concessions and waivers would be used to reach the proposed unit count. Staff also notes that the original office building was constructed in 1966 and that a Historic Resource Evaluation has been submitted as part of the review.
Design and Developer
Elysian Housing, a nonprofit developer, is listed as the applicant, with FSY Architects serving as the designer, according to materials presented to the commission and reported by Urbanize LA. Renderings show a contemporary podium-style structure organized around a central courtyard and a refreshed look for the existing building with new operable windows. The unit mix would run from studios up to three-bedroom apartments, all reserved for low- and moderate-income renters except for two on-site manager units. FSY’s portfolio already features multiple affordable and adaptive-reuse developments, which the firm highlights on its website (FSY Architects), suggesting the design team is on familiar ground with this kind of project.
Transit, Parking, and Neighborhood Fit
The staff report places the property within the East Pasadena Specific Plan’s commercial-office subarea and notes that it sits roughly two blocks north of Foothill Boulevard, close to the Metro A Line’s Sierra Madre Villa station and the 210 Freeway. Those locations are specifically targeted for more housing and transit-oriented development, according to the City of Pasadena staff report. Even in a transit-friendly area, the plan for only 55 vehicle stalls to serve 132 apartments is poised to draw scrutiny from commissioners and neighbors as the design is refined. To help offset the added density and keep some breathing room on the site, the proposal includes a landscaped courtyard and roof decks to offer shared outdoor space while keeping the building footprint relatively compact.
Next Steps
The project went before the Design Commission for a preliminary consultation on Jan. 27 and is expected to return for both concept and final design review before any permits are issued, according to Urbanize LA. Because the current submission is only for early feedback, no permanent approval is on the table yet. That gives city staff, commissioners and the public additional chances to weigh in on massing, exterior materials, parking and the fine print of the affordability mix. The proposal is part of a broader regional trend of turning older office properties into affordable housing, reflecting a growing push to reuse underused commercial buildings for homes reserved for lower-income renters.
