An urban transformation enhances a historic district

SOM’s masterplan for 100 West Walnut, a large redevelopment in the heart of Old Town Pasadena, realizes the potential of a large and underutilized site within this vibrant historic district. The 1970s office campus that occupied the site had long been seen as problematic, with its over-scaled building surrounded by surface parking. SOM reimagined the site in a way that sensitively introduces new buildings and public spaces to integrate the site with the pedestrian scale and architectural character of the district.

In addition to the adaptive reuse of the existing Parsons Corporation building, the redevelopment introduces a variety of mid-rise residential units, commercial and creative offices, shops, and a variety of dining options, each with a distinct exterior expression. The design integrates shaded arcades, walkable alleyways, paseos, and residential stoops to reflect and extend the neighborhood’s beloved network of alleyways and hidden plazas. 

Creative offices that convey a sense of place

10 West Walnut is the new flagship creative office building located at the northern edge of the site. SOM designed the building to harmonize with the surrounding district in terms of its scale and massing, materials, pedestrian networks, and view corridors. 

Movable glass walls directly connect 10 West’s lobbies to the street, enabling pedestrians to visit the site’s indoor public space, pass through the building, or access its public plaza. Interior landscaped gardens and plazas create a campus-like environment. With a variety of seating areas, these spaces provide opportunities for tenants and local residents to gather, work, and socialize. 

To give the building a human scale, we developed a massing strategy that discreetly splits the complex into three distinctly expressive volumes separated by glass-enclosed connections. This also allows for a variety of tenant configurations and flexible leasing strategies.

The office interiors are open concrete structures, finished to accommodate high ceilings and provide generous amounts of daylight. Each floor, unobstructed from north to south, features operable windows that provide cross-ventilation and views of the San Gabriel Mountains. Terraces on the upper floors allow tenants to enjoy Southern California’s temperate climate.

Designed for well-being and environmental performance

Efficient mechanical systems allowed the facade to be constructed with glass that has low reflectivity and high visible light transmittance. This feature, unusual for standard office environments, increases the amount of natural daylight inside. Employing passive design principles, brick window frames are designed to shade punched windows with recessed glass on the south, west and east facades. Additionally, the building’s east-to-west orientation optimizes daylighting to minimize solar heat gain, reduce energy consumption, and improve the building’s overall performance.

The landscape design draws inspiration from the native surroundings of Old Pasadena, specifically the Arroyo Seco—a portion of the meandering 22-mile natural watershed runs through Pasadena. Trees and shrub material native to the area and the Arroyo Seco inform the project’s plant palette, providing natural shade and habitat for indigenous birds while creating relaxing spaces throughout the development.

Designing dynamic brickwork

10 West features a repeating brick frame that highlights the building’s structural grid and large windows with both fixed and sliding glass panels. The extensive use of brick pays homage to the masonry found throughout the historic area. The design team developed a custom trapezoid-shaped brick which is used to add variety and texture to the facade.

Unique blends of brick hues distinguish the building’s multiple volumes. The corner at Fair Oaks and Walnut Street emphasizes red flashed bricks, while other volumes play off darker brick tones. The dark iron-spot brick blends used at 10 West Walnut evoke the bricks used as accent colors in many of the district’s historic buildings.