South Pasadena hears final Library Park campus site plan; ad hoc committee recommends 'B plus' option

Kathy Billings, South Pasadena’s library director, presented the final Library Park campus site‑plan report prepared by Group 4 Architecture Research and Planning at a Nov. 5 special study session. Billings told the council the project grew from an ad hoc committee formed in May 2024 and that the report reflects more than a year of community outreach.

Don Marcus, the Group 4 presenter, described the site as a one‑block downtown campus that includes the 1930 Community Hall, the main library (built 1982 at about 19,000 square feet), and the senior center (about 5,700 square feet). He said outreach reached “almost 3,000” participants overall, including about 672 survey respondents, and summarized the community’s priorities: books and reading spaces, intergenerational programming, more seating, and shared performance and learning spaces.

The consultant outlined three program levels: a renovation within the existing footprint (roughly 27,000 square feet), a new‑construction option that retains and integrates the 1930s building, and a larger new‑construction alternative of about 40,000 square feet. Marcus gave high‑level escalated cost ranges to reflect uncertainty at this stage: the renovation option at about $21 million–$25 million; a 27,000‑square‑foot new‑construction plus historic integration option in the mid $30‑million range (about $36.6 million–$41.4 million); and the largest option at roughly $53 million–$60 million.

Ad hoc committee members Julia Wang and Rich Elbaum presented the committee’s recommendation: an option the committee calls “B plus.” Wang and Elbaum said B plus would retain the historic 1930s community room and the mature Bay fig tree while adding approximately 10–20% more square footage to prioritize multiuse rooms rather than many single‑use spaces. Elbaum urged urgency, saying the city’s buildings have “deferred maintenance” and that delaying design work makes future work more expensive.

Council questions focused on the difference between a minimally viable renovation and fuller redesigns, accessibility and code compliance, and whether phasing or designing a shell for future expansion would be practical. The consultant cautioned that building codes change and that constructing a cold shell for future vertical expansion can itself be expensive.

City Manager Todd Heilman told the council staff is asking the council to accept the report and said staff will begin additional community outreach and a roads program survey after Thanksgiving. Heilman said the council will need to decide what size package to place before voters — if any — for November 2026 and that conceptual designs would help the city be competitive for grant funding.

The council moved to dissolve the ad hoc committee (the committee had completed its charge) and to reconstitute a similar body if and when the council advances to a project phase; the motion passed by roll call vote. The council accepted the report and directed next steps including outreach and return of materials for council consideration.