New Owner for 1921 YWCA
By Margaret Foster | Online Only | May 14, 2010
It's not every day that a city uses the option of last resort—eminent domain—to save a landmark. But it's happened in Pasadena, Calif.
In a bold move, the city council voted unanimously last month to acquire the 1921 Young Women's Christian Association building designed by the celebrated architect Julia Morgan. Vacant since 1982, the building has a leaky roof and is in "abysmal" condition, according to Jeff Cronin, the city's principal planner for design and historic preservation.
Onwer Angela Chen-Sabella of Trove Investments bought the YWCA in 1996 for $1.8 million, planning to convert it into a boutique hotel. After her plans stalled, the city offered to buy the vacant structure. Over the past five years, Cronin says, the city made repeated offers, reaching as high as $6.4 million—its appraised value—six months ago. But Chen-Sabella wanted twice that amount, according to the Los Angeles Times.
"She has not sat there and let the building rot," Chen-Sabella's attorney Greg Perry told the Times this month. City officials have cited Chen-Sabella numerous times for damage from water and trespassers. "The owners have had a pretty extensive history of code violations," says David Klug, redevelopment manager, who prepared a condition report on the YWCA for the Apr. 12 meeting. Each time, Chen-Sabella "usually complied sufficiently to abate the source of the complaint," Cronin says, but the building remains at risk.
Encompassing an entire city block in downtown Pasadena, the YWCA has a red-tile roof and decorative iron balconies, trademarks of Morgan, a San Francisco native who designed Hearst Castle and other famous buildings around the state during her 49-year career.
The Pasadena YWCA was designated a local landmark in 1976 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It's also a contributing structure to the Pasadena's National Register-listed Civic Center Historic District.
The preservation group Pasadena Heritage has identified the YWCA as "one of the city's most significant buildings," and placed it on a Watch List. "Pasadena Heritage stands by ready to support the right solution for the building and is hopeful that the city acquires the property quickly and stabilizes the structure to avoid further deterioration."
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Comments
Submitted by Florida Gypsy at: May 18, 2010
How sad that so many of these beautiful old structures are just sitting there, useless and abandoned. We must be active in acquiring and restoring them for future generations.
Submitted by cath61 at: May 18, 2010
Finally, we're saving a building designed by a female architect. Kudos to Pasadena Heritage for fighting to save it, and a slap to Chen-Sabella for trying to gouge for money in this time of economic downturn. Wish there was something Los Angeles could do to keep people from being able to do that.