#5 Civic
Center
Few cities in the West have a focal point that
will provoke visitors to say "We have arrived," yet Pasadena’s civic
center is one such place. It was planned in the early 1920s with a generosity
that suggests real cultural
consolidation within the community. We are all the beneficiaries. These spacious
and richly detailed buildings, broad
boulevards and park-like settings are
firmly rooted by a civic axis. In this scheme the Library commands the
north end, balanced by the Civic Auditorium at the south, with the City
Hall plaza at the center. Walking beneath its dome - visible for miles
- we expect a rotunda but instead are surprised to discover a fountain courtyard
with meticulously groomed gardens and shaded lawns. This tour includes many
vignettes of Pasadena’s older commercial areas. One favorite ensemble is the
Santa Fe station and the Green Hotel (99 S. Raymond), linked by a shared past.
Pasadena was once a favored resort, accessible to Eastern visitors by train.
Near the center of town, hotels such as the Green were an easy walk from the
Santa Fe Station. Heading north on Raymond, the peculiar bridge extending from
the Castle Green once spanned the street to the
original hotel.
From end of Tour #4:
- Continue east on Del Mar Blvd.
- Left on Los Robles Avenue
* view Pacific Asia Museum (46
N. Los Robles Avenue)
- Left on Walnut Street
* view Pasadena City Hall (100 N.
Garfield Avenue)
- Right on Colorado Blvd.
- Continue west on Colorado Blvd.
* drive through Old Pasadena
* pass Norton Simon Museum (411 W.
Colorado Blvd.)
- Left on Orange Grove Blvd.
- Left on Green Street
- Continue west on Green Street
* pass Castle Green (99 S. Raymond Avenue)
* pass Civic Auditorium/convention Center
(300 E. Green Street)
- End tour on Green Street & Los Robles Avenue
To begin tour #6, continue east on Green
Street
