Three months after overriding the advice of its staff, the Glendale City Council is set to rescind its October 2025 vote to reject plans to build housing on the former sites of Sears department store.

The project from Trammell Crow Residential, which would be located at 236 N. Central Avenue, calls for the construction of an eight-story, approximately 650,000-square-foot mixed-use complex containing 682 rental apartments - including 72 very low-income units - with 1,515 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and a 930-car garage.

California Avenue and Central AvenueAC Martin

Additionally, Trammell Crow Residential would  set aside a portion of the former Sears complex, located off-site to the north at 201 California Avenue, for potential redevelopment as a public park. 

Despite being armed with the protections of state housing law, as well as an AB 130 exemption from California Environmental Quality Act Review, the City Council voted 4-1 to reject TCR's project, objecting to a design which was perceived to not honor the past Art Deco look the Sears department store. An attorney representing the developer, as well as Mayor Ara Najarian (who was the lone dissenting vote), warned that rejecting the project could result in legal consequences.

Aerial view looking northwestAC Martin

The first sign of those potential consequences came from state regulators in late 2025, when the Department of Housing and Community Development issued a notice of violation of the Housing Accountability Act to Glendale, with a deadline of January 29, 2026 to reverse its decision. Accordingly, staff report recommends adopting a new motion to rescind the denial and approve the project.

Similar decisions by Planning Commissions in the City of Los Angeles have resulted in legal decisions compelling the approval of projects, such as a proposed density bonus development at 2115 E. Cesar Chavez Avenue in Boyle Heights and  the District Square development on Crenshaw Boulevard.

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