Scholars Grove

The Huntington is building 33 homes for its visiting scholars on the north side of its San Marino campus. Scholars Grove is seven low buildings set around a shared green, with a commons for the residents. San Marino approved it in spring 2025. The Huntington says it is now under construction and should open in fall 2027.

What's being built

The 33 homes are spread across seven two-story buildings, about 34,700 square feet in total. A one-story commons of about 3,300 square feet gives the residents a place to meet. The site has 98 parking spaces and a new vehicle gate.

The homes are for research fellows, the scholars who come to The Huntington for weeks or months to work in its library collections. The Huntington says the lack of housing has been a barrier for some fellows for more than 20 years. A $40 million gift from the late Charles T. Munger pays for the project.

The site and what's around it

Scholars Grove carves out 4.79 acres on the north end of The Huntington Library's 207-acre grounds, at South Allen Avenue and Orlando Road.

The design

VTBS Architects designed the buildings in a Mediterranean style, grouped around a central lawn. A rendering is on The Huntington's Scholars Grove page.

How it got here

The Huntington needed a conditional use permit, which is permission for a use the zoning allows only after a public review. The Planning Commission heard it over three meetings in early 2025 and approved it. The city found the project exempt from a full environmental study under the state's infill exemption, which covers modest projects on land already surrounded by development.

San Marino counts Scholars Grove toward its Housing Element, the state-required plan for how the city will make room for 397 new homes by 2029.

What still has to happen

The buildings have to be finished before fellows can move in. The Huntington's target is fall 2027.

Why this one matters

San Marino is almost entirely single-family homes. Its Housing Element names seven sites for new housing, and as of late 2025 Scholars Grove was the only one with an approved project. The next one is the city-owned Stoneman site, where proposals came in last March and, as of October 2026, the city has not picked a developer.

What this means if you live nearby

The work is inside The Huntington's grounds. Once it opens, the main change outside the walls is residents using an original gate off Orlando Road. For owners of private lots, it doesn't change what can be built: this was a conditional use on institutional land, not a rezoning of the neighborhood.