In 2012, the City of Pasadena received a grant from the California Office of Historic Preservation, through the Certified Local Government program, to create a public information program about historic resources in Pasadena. The program involved the creation of walking & driving tours that would be accessible in three ways: a smart phone app, the City’s website and a printed brochure. Each of these components is described in more detail below. The primary goal of the project is to foster greater understanding of buildings and sites that are important to the City’s history and of the value of the City’s historic preservation program. We trust that you find these materials to be informative and entertaining and welcome your comments on any suggested improvements. See the bottom of this page for contact information.
Website & Brochure
Below are links devoted to each of the mobile tours created for this project, as well as a link to download the mobile app. A separate page for each tour has been created and may be easily printed from a desktop computer. A color brochure has also been created that provides similar tour information, but most of the tours are shortened due to space constraints. In addition to the tours developed for this project, the Pasadena Convention & Visitor’s Bureau has developed a series of tours that are accessible from their website, http://www.visitpasadena.com. These tours will soon be accessible from the Historic Pasadena Mobile App.
Mobile Tours
- Bungalow Courts Driving Tour
- Bungalow Courts Walking Tour
- Cultural Landscapes Driving Tour
- Mid-Century Modern Houses Driving Tour
- Mid-Century Modern Non-Residential Buildings Driving Tour
- Neon Signs Driving Tour
- Pegfair Estates Ranch Houses Walking Tour
- Victorian Era Grandeur Walking Tour
- Victorian Era Neighborhoods Walking Tour
“Historic Pasadena” Smart Phone App
The “Historic Pasadena” smart phone app has three primary functions:
- Search for any historic resources near your current location
- Search for specific kinds of historic resources (such as architectural styles, works of a particular architect, etc.)
- Follow pre-defined mobile tours created by the City and other agencies
Each of these options will include the ability to obtain walking, driving or transit or directions to each point on the tour from your current location. Information about each stop on the tour will also be accessible, based on data that is included in the City’s online database of historic resources, known as the California Historical Resources Inventory Database, or CHRID. The smart phone app is available for both iPhone and Android devices, and the full CHRID database can also be accessed HERE.
Historic Preservation
The City of Pasadena adopted its first ordinance protecting historic structures in 1969 and has been surveying and documenting its historic resources since this time. The City is widely renowned for its commitment to historic preservation and for the presence of numerous sites and districts that are significant at the local, state and national level.
The City’s historic preservation program promotes the identification, evaluation, rehabilitation, adaptive use, and restoration of historic structures. The program also includes incentives for preserving and rehabilitating historic buildings and sites.
For more information about the City’s historic preservation program, or to provide comments or suggestions on the Historic Pasadena app, website or brochure, you may email Kevin Johnson, Project Manager at kevinjohnson@cityofpasadena.net, call (626) 744-7806 or visit our public counter at 175 N. Garfield Avenue, window 4.