PASADENA RECEIVED
HERITAGE 160 NORTH OAKLAND AVENUE P 626.441.6333
PRESERVATION | ADVOCACY | EDUCATION PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91101-1714
CITY CLERK
November 14, 2022 CITY OF PASADENA
Pasadena City Council
City of Pasadena
100 North Garfield Avenue
Pasadena, California 91101
Re: 1383 Prime Court
Dear Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council,
Pasadena Heritage understands that the City Council will be discussing 1383 Prime Court in Closed Session today as well as in the Consent Calendar as Item I I. Pasadena Heritage would like to remind the Council that the adjacent Washington Theater is a designated landmark, and as such, should be treated in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards. The recent conversion of much of the building from theater use to residential and commercial use was done under the supervision of the Design and Historic Preservation Division. The recent work altered some elements of the building, mostly on the interior, but we believe the building still conveys its historical significance.
We maintain that any adjacent development or additions to the building should also respect the integrity of the structure, and according to Pasadena's zoning code, should also conform to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards. However, a recent description of the proposed project on the Washington Theater and on 1383 Prime Court suggest otherwise.
The description included in the August 2022 Monthly Activity Report at the site of the Theater is listed as such:
Remodel existing building and add three floors of SRO units and three floors of subterranean parking; construct new building on adjacent vacant parcel (1 383 Prime Ct) with three floors of SRO units and three floors of subterranean parking.
It is difficult to evaluate a project on this description alone, but the intrusive nature of the work described would seem to point to a project that would severely impact the Washington Theater. Three stories of SRO housing above the theater and three stories of parking below would do great harm to the structure and would be grave injustice to an beloved community site.
Pasadena Heritage believes that property negotiations can continue, but we urge you also to think of the importance of the theater. If a sympathetic project cannot emerge out of these negotiations, it may be better simply to declare the property at | 383 Prime Court as
PRESERVATION / ADVOCACY EDUCATION
11/14/2022
Item 11
PASADENA
HER I T A G E 160 NORTH OAKLAND AVENUE P 626.441.6333
PRESERVATION | ADVOCACY | EDUCATION PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91101-1714 WWW.PASADENAHERITAGE.ORG surplus property. In that scenario, the Washington Theater would continue to operate as it does currently, as a mixed-use building, and Pasadena could also add much needed affordable housing on the site of an underutilized parking lot.
Sincerely,
Aala soli-
Susan N. Mossman Andrew Salimian
Executive Director Preservation Director
CC: Mark Jomsky, City Clerk
David A. Klug, Economic Development Director
David Sinclair, Project Manager
PRESERVATION ADVOCACY EDUCATION