General Contractor in Pasadena

Green Design and Build is a licensed general contractor (CSLB #1110975) based at 16120 Sherman Way in Van Nuys, about 35 minutes from Pasadena by the 134 and 210. We are a full-service residential general contractor and design-build remodeler for projects of every size — kitchens, bathrooms, ADUs, room additions, hillside work and whole-home renovations — serving homeowners across Los Angeles County, Orange County, Ventura County, western Riverside County and western San Bernardino County. Led by Dekel Sofer, we have completed hundreds of projects and hold a 4.7-star rating across 146 Yelp reviews.

Pasadena has the most protected housing stock of any city we work in, its own Permit Center, a Hillside Overlay and a municipal utility. Remodeling here is as much about knowing which review applies to your street as it is about the construction, and this page explains both.

Pasadena’s own rules: the Permit Center, landmark districts and the Hillside Overlay

Pasadena issues its own permits from the Permit Center at 175 North Garfield Avenue, next to City Hall, and requires online submittal through the Pasadena Citizen Self Service portal for all additions, ADUs and new construction. Simple projects that meet the city’s over-the-counter thresholds can be reviewed at the counter in minutes; anything with structure, an addition or an ADU goes through plan check. We handle the account, the submittal, the corrections and the inspections.

Two overlays decide how a Pasadena project is designed:

• Landmark districts. Pasadena has designated more than twenty landmark districts — Bungalow Heaven is the best known — and in a landmark district any change to an exterior feature other than painting needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the city’s Design & Historic Preservation staff before a building permit is issued. Interior kitchen and bathroom work is not affected. An addition, a new window, a porch repair or a change of siding is. The rule for ADUs in these districts is that a non-exempt ADU cannot be visible from the public right-of-way unless that would prevent one from being built at all.
• The Hillside Overlay District. Linda Vista, the San Rafael hills, the Annandale area, Upper Hastings Ranch and the streets against the San Gabriel foothills fall under Pasadena’s Hillside Overlay, which adds hillside development review, tighter height and floor-area rules, and narrower-street limits. Detached ADUs in the overlay are capped at 1,000 sq ft (800 sq ft on streets 26 feet wide or narrower), and every ADU in the overlay is limited to 16 feet.

Both overlays are manageable when the project is designed for them from day one. Where they hurt is when a set drawn for a flat Los Angeles lot is submitted in Pasadena and comes back with a full redesign.

Pasadena housing stock and what it means for a remodel

Craftsman bungalows and the Arts and Crafts legacy (1900s–1920s). Bungalow Heaven, Madison Heights, the Historic Highlands and the streets around Orange Grove hold the largest concentration of Craftsman homes in Southern California: low-pitched roofs, wide eaves with exposed rafter tails, river-rock or clinker-brick chimneys, built-in cabinetry and wood windows. The right remodel keeps all of that visible from the street and modernizes behind it — new plumbing, a 200-amp service, insulation, seismic bolting of the raised foundation, and a kitchen that respects the original proportions.

Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor and Mediterranean (1920s–30s). San Rafael, the Arroyo Seco edge, Caltech-area streets and Oak Knoll. Plaster walls, tile roofs, arched openings. Additions here are usually to the rear and are reviewed for compatibility.

Post-war ranches and mid-century homes (1940s–60s). East Pasadena, Hastings Ranch, Upper Hastings Ranch and the tracts toward Sierra Madre. Larger, flatter lots with detached or attached garages — the easiest Pasadena lots for a detached ADU, a garage conversion or a straightforward ground-floor addition.

Whatever the era, three things are constant: Pasadena Water and Power is the utility for electrical service changes, not Southern California Edison; every home built before 1978 gets EPA lead-safe demolition practices; and the foothill neighborhoods sit in Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones that require Chapter 7A ignition-resistant exteriors on additions and new structures.

After the Eaton Fire. The January 2025 Eaton Fire destroyed homes in Upper Hastings Ranch and across the city line in Altadena, and rebuilding and smoke-damage renovation are now a large part of the residential construction happening in and around Pasadena. The city has prioritized its pre-approved ADU plans for fire-affected properties. If your home was affected, we can walk through what the permit path looks like for a rebuild, a repair or a temporary ADU on the lot.

ADUs in Pasadena

Outside the overlays, Pasadena allows a detached new-construction ADU of up to 1,200 sq ft, an attached ADU of 850 sq ft (studio or one bedroom) or 1,000 sq ft (two or more bedrooms), and a junior ADU of up to 500 sq ft inside the house. Detached ADUs may be two stories and up to 18 feet; side and rear setbacks are 4 feet. Units of 750 sq ft or less are exempt from impact fees under state law. The city has 15 business days to determine an application complete and 60 days to act on it. Check what your lot allows with our ADU rules calculator and read how much it costs to build an ADU and why ADU quotes vary so much before you get bids. Every Pasadena rule, fee category and permit step is laid out in our Pasadena ADU rules guide.

What we build in Pasadena

• Kitchen remodeling — Craftsman and Spanish kitchens rebuilt behind an unchanged façade, and open-plan remodels in the post-war tracts. Read what homeowners wish they knew before remodeling a kitchen.
• Bathroom remodeling — period-appropriate tile and fixtures where the house calls for it, curbless showers where it does not. See how much a bathroom remodel costs.
• ADUs and garage conversions — rear-yard units designed to stay out of view in the landmark districts, and full-size detached ADUs in East Pasadena.
• Room additions — rear additions and second stories designed for compatibility review.
• Whole-home renovations — the complete systems-and-finishes renovation a century-old house eventually needs, under one permit. See our remodeling services.
• Foundation and structural work — bolting and cripple-wall bracing on raised foundations, hillside retaining walls. Our post on warning signs your foundation needs repair covers the symptoms.
• Roofing — composition, tile and Class A fire-rated assemblies in the foothills.
• Windows and doors — restoration or district-compatible replacement in the landmark districts.
• Flooring, painting, patio covers, pavers and outdoor living.
• Concrete, retaining walls, artificial turf, fencing, outdoor kitchens and decks and landscaping and irrigation.
• Plumbing and electrical upgrades as part of remodels, performed by licensed tradespeople.

Permits in Pasadena: how we run it

We start by confirming three things about your address: whether it is in a landmark district, whether it is in the Hillside Overlay, and whether it is in a fire hazard zone. Those answers set the design. For landmark-district work we prepare the Certificate of Appropriateness package — existing-condition photos, elevations and material specifications — before the building set, because the certificate has to be in hand before the permit. Then the plans, structural calculations and Title 24 energy compliance go through the Citizen Self Service portal, we answer plan-check corrections, and we schedule inspections with the Building Division. Our Los Angeles County page explains the wider county picture, and our Glendale page covers the neighboring city, which runs a different design-review system.

What homeowners say

From our Yelp reviews:

“They completely remodeled my kitchen and they turned out beautiful. The job came in within my budget including full 3rd design rendering.” — Yakir A.

“I hired Green Design and Build to do my bathroom. From start to finish, Drake was the best!” — Leore O.

More on our About page.

Recent work in Pasadena: a full kitchen remodel with a new island, taken down to the framing and rebuilt with white shaker cabinets and pendant lighting. Before, during and after photos are on the project page.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a Certificate of Appropriateness to remodel in Pasadena?

Only if your home is in one of Pasadena’s landmark districts, such as Bungalow Heaven, and only for exterior changes; painting is exempt and interior kitchen or bathroom remodels are not reviewed. Any other change to an exterior feature — an addition, a window, siding, a porch — needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the city’s Design & Historic Preservation staff before a building permit is issued. Green Design and Build prepares the certificate package and designs the exterior to the district standards.

Can I build an ADU in Pasadena?

Yes, Pasadena allows a detached ADU of up to 1,200 sq ft, an attached ADU of 850 to 1,000 sq ft depending on bedrooms, and a junior ADU of up to 500 sq ft, with 4-foot side and rear setbacks and an 18-foot height limit for detached units. In the Hillside Overlay the detached cap drops to 1,000 sq ft, or 800 sq ft on streets 26 feet wide or narrower, and in landmark districts a non-exempt ADU generally cannot be visible from the street. Green Design and Build designs to whichever set of rules applies to your lot.

How much does a kitchen remodel cost in Pasadena?

A Pasadena kitchen remodel depends on whether walls move, whether the plumbing and electrical are original, and the finish level, and work in a Craftsman or landmark-district home usually costs more because original details are kept and matched. Green Design and Build provides an itemized written estimate after a free site visit; for published ranges by project type, see our guide to what a Los Angeles general contractor costs.

Which utility handles a panel upgrade in Pasadena?

Pasadena Water and Power, the city-owned utility, handles electrical service changes in Pasadena rather than Southern California Edison, so a 200-amp panel upgrade for a kitchen remodel, EV charger or ADU is coordinated with PWP alongside the city building permit. Green Design and Build schedules the utility work as part of the project.

How far is Green Design and Build from Pasadena?

Green Design and Build’s office at 16120 Sherman Way in Van Nuys is about 35 minutes from Pasadena by the 134 and 210 Freeways, depending on the time of day. Site visits are scheduled around traffic and crews start early. Homeowners are welcome to visit the office, which is open every day from 8 AM to 6 PM.

Are you licensed to work in Pasadena?

Yes, Green Design and Build holds California General Building Contractor license CSLB #1110975 and is licensed, bonded and insured for residential work in Pasadena and throughout Los Angeles County. The license can be verified on the Contractors State License Board website. HVAC, plumbing and electrical work on our projects is performed by licensed tradespeople.

Kitchen remodeling in Pasadena

Kitchens are a large share of what we build in Pasadena. For the local permit path, what the work costs and photographs of a Pasadena kitchen we finished, see kitchen remodeling in Pasadena.

Plan your Pasadena remodel with a contractor who knows the overlays

Tell us the street and what you want to build, and we will schedule a free site visit, tell you whether landmark, hillside or fire-zone rules apply, and give you a written, itemized estimate.