October 23, 2025
Our good friends Todd and Kristin live in Pasadena, which is about ten miles northeast of downtown LA. Todd took us for a tour through their beautiful neighborhood. First stop was the home of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The US Courts of Appeals review decisions from the District Courts and are one level below the Supreme Court. There are 13 US Courts of Appeals that, all except for one, are organized by geographic region. The exception is the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit which hears specific types of cases, including patents, international trade, trademarks. The Ninth Circuit covers all of the western states, including California. The courthouse was built as a resort hotel. But during World War II, it was acquired by the US War Department and converted into an army hospital. It was then used by a number of federal agencies before becoming a courthouse in the 1980s. It is beautiful Spanish Colonial Revival style building and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The courthouse is surrounded by other beautiful buildings, including The Maxwell House, home of the Western Justice Center
The Shakespeare Club
And this small apartment building, which had a beautiful mosaic mural over the entry to its parking.
There are a number of beautiful apartment and condo complexes in the neighborhood, including the Ambassador Mansions and Gardens, which include luxury apartments and condos and a Japanese garden, complete with a cascading creek, koi and turtles.
The original mansion and surrounding buildings were once the campus of Ambassador College, a liberal arts school that was affiliated with the Worldwide Church of God (WCG). The WCG had been founded by Herbert W. Armstrong and had a number of controversial doctrines, including the fact that the British people were descendants of the lost tribes of Israel. Armstrong also rejected what he regarded as pagan beliefs that had been adopted into Christianity, including the Holy Trinity, Christmas and Easter. In true evangelical pastor fashion, Armstrong was also accused of stealing millions of dollars from the church to support his lavish lifestyle of luxury cars, mansions and private jets. He died in 1986 and the church eventually reformed to adopt more mainstream Christian beliefs, changing its name to Grace Communion International. The College, however, closed its doors in 1997 and was developed as a residential property.
Interestingly, the complex was developed around massive mansions that were the original occupants, built in the early 1900s.
The centerpiece of the College was the Ambassador Auditorium built in 1974.
Across the road from the complex is the Wrigley Mansion, a stately Italian Renaissance style building that was owned by William Wrigley Jr., the chewing gum magnate. It is now the home of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association that organizes the annual Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game, both of which take place on New Year’s Day. The game takes place at the nearby Rose Bowl, an outdoor stadium that was built in 1922 and has a capacity of close to 90,000.
Mal and Lauren 