Downtown Specific Plan (DTSP)
Purpose: The Downtown Specific Plan was adopted on September 27, 2023 and will guide Downtown South Pasadena in a direction that improves the quality of life for residents, employees, and visitors. The specific plan includes policies and strategies to preserve historic assets, encourage contextual infill development of vacant and underutilized parcels, create jobs, and maintain and support existing compatible businesses and industry, as well as accommodate housing for a variety of income levels. The specific plan will provide a vision for the future as well as predictability for new residential, office, and retail development.
View and download the full DTSP document (Adopted 09/27/2023)(PDF, 73MB)
Regulating Plan Map(PDF, 184KB)
Cover Page, Table of Contents, and Acknowledgements(PDF, 18MB)
Part A: Introduction
Introduction(PDF, 32MB)
Vision(PDF, 49MB)
Part B: Policy
Goals, Policies, and Actions(PDF, 59MB)
Part C: Code
Introduction(PDF, 2MB)
Chapter 1 - Purpose and Applicability(PDF, 632KB)
Chapter 2 - Zones and Regulating Plan(PDF, 818KB)
Chapter 3 - Land Use Standards(PDF, 232KB)
Chapter 4 - Development Standards(PDF, 14MB)
Chapter 5 - Building Design Standards(PDF, 8MB)
Chapter 6 - Frontage Standards(PDF, 7MB)
Chapter 7 - Streets, Blocks, and Open Space(PDF, 11MB)
Chapter 8 - Landscape Standards(PDF, 8MB)
Chapter 9 - Signs and Other Standards(PDF, 11MB)
Chapter 10 - Administration(PDF, 75KB)
Chapter 11 - Definitions(PDF, 747KB)
Part D: Implementation
Implementation(PDF, 20MB)
List of Figures and Tables(PDF, 220KB)
Ministerial Application Process
The DTSP prescribes a ministerial process to allow the Director of the Community Department to review qualifying residential projects. “Qualifying residential projects” is defined in the DTSP as “a) Any residential or mixed-use project with ten or more residential units that provides affordable housing in compliance with the City’s Inclusionary Housing Requirements (Division 36.375 of the Municipal code). b) Any residential or mixed-use project with nine or fewer residential units in which at least twenty percent (20%) of the units are affordable to lower income households.” (p. 161 of DTSP(PDF, 75KB) )
DTSP Relevant Forms:
DTSP Ministerial Design Review Application(PDF, 317KB)