The South Pasadena Unified School District (SPUSD) has sold a two-acre plus property at 1030 and 1100 El Centro Street in South Pasadena.
According to realtors Joe Kaplan and Bill Ukropina, the SPUSD was no longer in need of the property, having recently purchased an adjacent office building, using the El Centro property sale to finance the office building purchase.
According to Kaplan, the two adjacent properties have served as school properties since the late 1800s, although both have been rebuilt.
“The new owners are going to do a lot of due diligence regarding what can be constructed on the property,” said Ukropina, “and work with the city and the residents to develop a project that will benefit everyone.”
Ukropina also mentioned that the property will likely be some type of retail/residential mixed use development, “but that’s far down the road.”
Kaplan added that, “The big thing is to really work with the community and make sure that it’s a project for everyone.”
Frank Gangi, president of Gangi Development, who is part of the group who purchased the property, told Pasadena Now, “Right now, we’re looking at a couple of options for the historic building. And the overall plan is to add much needed housing on the site.”
Gangi said the plan would also comply with the Mission Street Specific Plan with some retail units fronting Mission Street with additional housing above and behind the building.
“I believe this project will be a signature project for the downtown,” said Gangi, who added, “Right now it really depends on the approval process and we’re hoping to go through the entitlement process with the city in about 18 months. We’re going to start, of course, by reaching out to the community and dialoguing with the stakeholders, so that we make sure that we have a vision for the site that people and local citizens are embracing as well.”
