A massive commercial research and laboratory building is being proposed at 1364 E. Green Street (corner of Green and Holliston) by Caltech and Trammell Crow, a multi-billion-dollar developer.

 

On paper, the project supports innovation. But when you look at scale, location, and long-term impact, it raises important questions about consistency with Pasadena’s planning principles. (Sources: 2015 Pasadena General Plan, 2022 East Colorado Specific Plan)

 

What’s being proposed

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• 79-foot-tall research and laboratory building

• 93,539 square feet of commercial space

• 260-car, 3-level underground parking garage

• Garage access on Holliston Avenue

• Majority of space intended for large biotechnology companies with undisclosed lab operations steps away from schoolchildren and homes

 

This proposal would place a building of downtown-scale intensity directly next to a historic church and school, and across the street from homes on a street historically planned for much lower heights.

 

Why this matters beyond this block

 

This is not just a neighborhood issue.

 

Trammell Crow and Caltech's project will help define how Pasadena applies its planning standards citywide.  Approving a 79-foot commercial R&D building in this setting would set a precedent for allowing similar development in residential areas across Pasadena.

 

Key concerns

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⚠️ Hundreds of children attend school and play just steps from this site. Yet laboratory, traffic, and construction impacts were never studied.

 

⚠️ Why not? Because the project was granted a CEQA exemption, meaning it did not go through a full environmental review specific to its site and proposed uses.

 

⚠️ At 79 feet tall (equivalent to a 6-7 story residential building), it exceeds the long-standing 51-foot neighborhood height limit.

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⚠️ Will increase traffic and congestion funneled onto local residential streets, including a garage entrance for 260 cars in the path of pedestrians and schoolchildren.

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⚠️ Will overshadow the adjacent century-old historic church designed by master architect Roland Coate, affecting the historic character of Pasadena’s surrounding neighborhoods.​​

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This is about fit, not opposition.

 

What we're asking

We do not oppose development or Caltech. We support Pasadena's innovation economy and want it to thrive.

• Is this the right location for a 79-foot laboratory building next to a school and near homes?

• Should a project of this scale and use have undergone a full Environmental Impact Report?

• Does the project align with the city’s own planning goals?

 

We would support:

 

• A more appropriately scaled project and full environmental review.

• Or a location better suited to a building of this size and use.

 

Good planning does not stop progress—it directs growth where it works best.