Kitchen Remodeling in Pasadena
Green Design and Build is a licensed general contractor (CSLB #1110975) based in Van Nuys and working across Los Angeles County, Pasadena included. We build kitchens as a design-build contractor — drawings, engineering, permit and construction under one contract.
Pasadena runs its own building department and its own code amendments, and on two points its rules are stricter than most homeowners assume. Both are below.
A Pasadena kitchen we built
This one had mirrored wall panels, a half-wall dropping down to a sunken living room, and a kitchen you could not see from the rest of the house. Everything came out — mirrors, drywall, cabinets, the old soffits — back to the framing. New window openings went in, then drywall and paint, new cabinets and an island, quartz counters, appliances, pendant lighting, flooring and plantation shutters.
The full sequence, framing stage onward: Kitchen remodel in Pasadena with an island.
What Pasadena requires, and where it is stricter
Permits come from the Planning & Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division, at the Pasadena Permit Center, 175 N. Garfield Avenue — the George Ellery Hale Building, not City Hall. Hours are 8:30am to 3:00pm Monday to Thursday plus alternating Fridays, so check the city’s Permit Center calendar before you drive over.
New cabinets need a permit here, even in the same footprint
This is the one that catches people. Pasadena’s own Residential Kitchen Remodel handout requires a permit for “removal & replacement and/or relocation of kitchen cabinets & countertops, sink, dishwasher, new/altered island, or replacement/alteration to the electrical & exhaust hood.”
What is exempt is narrower than in Los Angeles or Burbank: “kitchen countertop replacement or re-facing of existing cabinets.” Re-face the cabinets and swap the counter and you are exempt. Pull the cabinets out and put new ones in the same places and you are not. If you have read elsewhere that like-for-like cabinet replacement is exempt, that is true in some cities and it is not true in Pasadena.
The whole-house fixture retrofit
Pasadena states it directly: California Civil Code requires that all non-compliant plumbing fixtures throughout the house be upgraded whenever a building permit is issued for remodeling improvements, even if the fixtures are not within the scope of work. Homes built after 1 January 1994 are exempt.
Pasadena’s housing stock skews older than that, so a kitchen permit frequently means bringing bathrooms into compliance too: toilets at 1.28 gallons per flush, showerheads at 2.0 gpm, bathroom faucets at 1.2 gpm, kitchen faucets at 1.8 gpm. Budget for it at the start rather than meeting it at plan check.
The range hood has to be verified by a HERS rater
Under the current energy code, kitchen range hood fans require HERS rater verification, except hoods exhausting more than 400 cfm at minimum speed. Pasadena also requires local exhaust to vent outdoors — recirculating hoods are not accepted — through smooth metal duct, with aluminium flex prohibited and a backdraft damper fitted. Upper cabinets sit a minimum 30 inches above the cooking surface.
If your house is a landmark, or in a landmark district
Pasadena has landmarks, landmark districts and historic districts, and homeowners in them often assume any work needs historic review. For a kitchen, usually it does not.
The city exempts interior alterations from Certificate of Appropriateness review, and states plainly that “exterior alterations not visible from the street, interior alterations, paint colors, landscaping, installation of solar panels and routine maintenance are all exempt from review.” A kitchen remodel that stays inside the walls does not need a Certificate of Appropriateness, even in a landmark district.
Where it changes: the moment the work goes exterior. A new or enlarged window or door opening, a relocated window on a street-facing elevation, or a new range hood duct penetrating a visible wall can trigger review. Two further exceptions are worth naming — a designated historic monument whose designation report calls out interior features, and interior fixtures designed by the firm of Greene and Greene, which the city singles out and which is a real exposure in Pasadena rather than a hypothetical one.
Pasadena adopted the 2025 California Building Codes effective 1 January 2026 with its own local amendments. Confirm current requirements with Building & Safety on (626) 744-7601 — we do this on every job as part of the site visit.
How long the paperwork takes
Pasadena reviews simple projects that meet its over-the-counter thresholds in as little as five to ten minutes. More complex projects going to behind-the-counter review take approximately two to four weeks, and the city notes that projects average three plan submissions including the initial one and revisions. Permits are valid for 180 days from issuance, with one possible extension.
A kitchen remodel needs a minimum of two inspections: a rough electrical inspection once the boxes are in and before devices are connected, then a final. If walls are coming out, the submittal has to show the existing framing layout so the city can determine whether the wall is bearing — and engineering may be required if it is.
What a kitchen costs in Pasadena
We publish three working tiers for a Los Angeles kitchen. They hold in Pasadena as well as anywhere else in the Valley — what moves the number is the size of the room, whether walls move, and the finishes.
| Tier | Typical range | What it usually means |
|---|---|---|
| Refit | $25,000–$40,000 | Cabinets, counters, appliances and finishes replaced in the existing layout. Nothing structural. |
| Reconfigure | $40,000–$70,000 | Layout changes, an island added, plumbing and electrical moved, often a wall opened up. |
| Full rebuild | $70,000–$100,000 | Down to the framing, structural changes, new windows, custom cabinetry and higher-end appliances. |
These are typical Los Angeles budgeting estimates, not a price list or a quote. Your project can come in lower or higher depending on the house, the scope and the finishes; the only real number is a written proposal after a site visit.
The detail behind those tiers — where the money actually goes, and what pushes a kitchen from one tier to the next — is in our Los Angeles kitchen remodel cost guide.
Questions we get asked
Do I need a permit to replace my kitchen cabinets in Pasadena?
Yes, if you are removing and replacing them — Pasadena requires a permit for removal, replacement or relocation of kitchen cabinets and countertops, the sink, the dishwasher, a new or altered island, and electrical or exhaust hood work. Only countertop replacement and re-facing existing cabinets are exempt. This is stricter than the City of Los Angeles.
Why do I have to change fixtures in rooms I am not remodeling?
California Civil Code requires all non-compliant plumbing fixtures in the house to be upgraded when a remodel permit is issued, whether or not they are in the scope of work. Pasadena enforces this at permit issuance. Homes built after 1 January 1994 are exempt.
My house is in a landmark district. Does my kitchen need historic review?
Usually not. Pasadena exempts interior alterations from Certificate of Appropriateness review, so an interior kitchen remodel does not require one even in a landmark district. Review is triggered when work goes exterior — a new or enlarged window opening, a relocated street-facing window, or a hood duct through a visible wall. Designated historic monuments with interior features named in the designation report, and Greene and Greene interior fixtures, are the exceptions.
What is HERS verification and does my hood need it?
HERS is third-party verification of energy-code compliance. Kitchen range hood fans require it under the current code, other than hoods exhausting more than 400 cfm at minimum speed. Your hood also has to vent outdoors through smooth metal duct — recirculating hoods and aluminium flex are not accepted.
How long will the permit take?
Simple projects meeting the over-the-counter thresholds can be reviewed in five to ten minutes. Anything going to behind-the-counter review takes roughly two to four weeks, and most projects go through about three submissions in total. Permits are then valid for 180 days.
Can we open up the wall between the kitchen and the dining room?
Often yes. Pasadena requires the submittal to show the existing framing layout so the city can determine whether the wall is bearing, and engineering may be required if it is. We establish that at the site visit, before drawings, because it changes both cost and timeline.
Related: Kitchen remodeling across Los Angeles · General contractor in Pasadena · Kitchen remodel cost guide · Removing a load-bearing wall · Our projects
Tell us about your Pasadena kitchen
Send us the basics — the size of the kitchen, whether you want to move any walls, and roughly when you would like to start — and we will come out, take measurements and put a written scope and estimate in front of you within about 48 hours of the visit.