The South Pasadena Public Art Commission gave conceptual approval Sept. 29 to a proposal for hand-painted azulejo-style tile murals at the Raymond senior living and affordable housing project at 601–625 Fair Oaks Avenue.

Acting planning manager Dean Flores told the commission the development qualified for the public art program because it is a multifamily project with valuation above the municipal threshold. The applicant’s team presented tile proposals for several prominent façades, including a turreted corner at Grevillea and Fair Oaks and the parking entrance along Veil Street.

Owner’s representative Odum Stamps said the design draws inspiration from the historic Raymond Hotel and Mediterranean revival ornament. Mission Tile West’s Tom Rogers described production: tiles will be made on a high-fired clay body for durability and hand-painted by an onsite studio team under lead artist Lily Castro. “We make the clay body that they’re made on…They’re made to be durable in swimming pools,” Rogers said, describing a production process intended to outlast typical mural paint.

Art consultant Marylinda Moss told the commission the work would be original, hand-painted murals — not a manufactured repeating pattern — and that the applicant intends to commission artists to create narrative panels and patterns tied to South Pasadena history. Stamps estimated the public art allocation would be on the order of 1% of project value, “somewhere around $85,000,” and said the project team sees the budget as sufficient to hire artists and produce fired tile samples.

Commissioners asked about production capacity, timeline and maintenance. Mission Tile described an in-house team able to fabricate the tiles, and the applicant proposed a maintenance plan of periodic washing, avoiding harsh chemicals, and prompt repair of broken tiles by the artist. Community Development Director Erica Ramirez confirmed that code requires public-art approval or fee resolution prior to issuance of building permits.

Commissioner Seale moved to approve the conceptual artwork; commissioners then took a roll call and the commission’s motion to approve the concept carried. The approval was explicitly conceptual: the commission approved the use of painted tile as the medium and the general proposal but required the applicant to return with enlarged elevations, artist cartoons/mock-ups and, if available, fired tile samples for final approval.

The applicant said plan-check is scheduled for mid-November and that they expect permits and a spring 2026 construction start if the final art review proceeds on the proposed schedule.