Old Pasadena, Pasadena, CA

Old Pasadena is the historic downtown of Pasadena, a grid of brick commercial blocks and back alleys along Colorado Boulevard that slid into disrepair in the middle of the last century and was brought back through preservation rather than the bulldozer. Living here means living above or beside the storefronts. Mixed-use buildings stack apartments over retail, and newer condo and townhome projects near the rail stations add rooftop decks. Detached houses are rare. The coffee alone gives you a reason to walk around. For dinner, Union on East Union Street makes its pasta from scratch, and Agnes on West Green Street cooks over an open hearth with a cheese counter attached. Green space is small but close. Central Park on South Raymond and Memorial Park give the district two lawns, and three intersections use pedestrian scrambles, so crossing on the diagonal is normal. The Arroyo Seco and the Colorado Street Bridge sit to the west for longer walks. Errands work on foot. Ralphs is on West Colorado and Gelson's is on East Green, and the Metro A Line stops at Memorial Park and Del Mar for trips to downtown Los Angeles. A car is optional for a lot of Old Pasadena residents in a way it isn't elsewhere in the city. The tradeoff is the crowd. Weekend nights bring full sidewalks, bar noise and circling for parking, and the Rose Parade runs straight down Colorado. The restored alleys behind the main street are how people who live here slip around all of it.