South Pasadena parking lot could be site for new mixed-use project

A parking lot on a busy corner of South Pasadena could be a key to the city's commercial growth as well as a source of income for its cash-strapped school district.

South Pasadena Board of Education members are expected Tuesday to discuss proposals for development of the school district parking lot on Mission Street.

City and schools officials say retail, residential or mixed-use construction would increase the vitality of South Pasadena's business corridor, strengthen the city's tax base and provide schools with a steady revenue stream.

The parking lot is increasingly viewed as the most underutilized space on Mission between the Gold Line station and Fair Oaks Avenue. "The term I've heard is the missing tooth in the Mission Street smile," South Pasadena Unified School District Supt. Joel Shapiro told the Pasadena Sun.

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-- Joe Piasecki, Times Community News