Pasadena Unified teachers and staff could move into 110 below-market rental units on the former Roosevelt Elementary campus by late 2028. The district is asking residents to weigh in on the plans.

The district is hosting a drop-in open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, in the Arroyo Room at Brookside Golf Club, 1133 Rosemont Ave. Project team members will answer questions. There will be no formal presentation, according to a district update reported by Pasadena Now.

It is the district's first workforce housing project.

The development at 315 N. Pasadena Ave. would include 80 apartments and 30 townhomes on the roughly five-acre site, which has sat vacant since Roosevelt Elementary closed in 2020. Half of the 110 units would be reserved as affordable housing for income-qualifying employees. The rest would be unrestricted but rented below market rate, according to the district's project page.

Construction is estimated at $82 million to $85 million, funded by Measure O and Measure R bonds. The district said construction could begin as soon as the fourth quarter of 2026, take about 24 months and deliver homes as early as the fourth quarter of 2028.

The housing push comes as the district grapples with high turnover and a housing crisis made worse by the Eaton Fire. Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco said at a July 2025 open house that more than 120 district employees lost their homes in the blaze. That session, held in the same Arroyo Room, drew nearly 100 people.

The district's project page states the housing aims to help recruit and retain employees who face unsustainable commutes and rising costs. Revenue from the housing would also support maintenance and repair of school facilities.

Eight buildings in a Spanish Revival style would be arranged around a central garden: two three-story apartment buildings on the south and west sides, five two-story townhome clusters on the north and east, plus a 5,024-square-foot community center and 223 parking spaces, according to Pasadena Now's report on the project's Design Commission review.

The unit mix, per the district's project page, breaks down to 31% one-bedroom, 44% two-bedroom, 19% three-bedroom and 6% four-bedroom.

The project still faces city review. Pasadena City Council voted unanimously in June to deny landmark status for the old school building, clearing the way for demolition of structures dating to 1953 with additions through 1972. In August, Design Commissioners said the plan underuses the site and asked the district to study land banking, according to Pasadena Now. The project must return for consolidated design review and building permits.

The district is pursuing approvals under state housing streamlining laws Assembly Bill 2295 and Senate Bill 35, which the district said could deliver entitlements roughly 1.5 to 2 years faster than the traditional process. The project also contributes to Pasadena's state-mandated housing goal of more than 9,000 units.

The PUSD Board of Education first discussed workforce housing at the Roosevelt site at a Dec. 16, 2021, meeting and formally approved the project March 28, 2024.

The board's next regular meeting is Thursday, Sept. 24, at 5 p.m. in the Elbie J. Hickambottom Board Room, Room 236, at 351 S. Hudson Ave.