HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-05-20 City Council (7)City of Palo Alto
City Manager’s Report
TO:
FROM:
HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING AND
COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT
DATE:
SUBJECT:
MAY 20, 2002 CMR:239:02
900 HIGH STREET: RECOMMENDATION FROM THE
HISTORIC RESOURCES BOARD AT THE REQUEST OF THE
OWNERS, THE SANTANA FAMILY, TO DESIGNATE A
BUILDING DESIGNED BY BIRGE CLARK TO THE CITY OF
PALO ALTO’S HISTORIC INVENTORY IN CATEGORY 2
PURSUANT TO MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 16.49 (HISTORIC
PRESERVATION ORDINANCE).
RECOMMENDATION
The Historic Resources Board (HRB) and staff reCommend that the City Council honor
the owner’s request to designate the building located at 900 High Street as a significant
building in Category 2 based on its finding that the building meets the definition of a
Category 2 building and all six local criteria for historic designation as set forth in
Chapter 16.49.
BACKGROUND
This postwar modernist building was designed by Birge Clark and Walter Stromquist in
1946. It was Constructed by the well-known local builder; Wells P. Goodenough, who
had collaborated with Birge Clark since the beginning of Clark’s career in the early
1920’s.
The building, as originally built for the Palo Alto Nash Company, was depicted in a
drawing by Clark and Stromquist that appeared in. an advertisement in the Palo Alto
Times in 1946 (see Attachment D). A comparison of the drawing with the existing.
building shows that the original massing of the building remains unchanged, and that the
distinctive modernist fenestration design is generally intact. The report by Dames &
Moore noted the most significant alteration of the building to date: the addition of four
aluminum entry doors on the glass walls of the showroom in 1960. The only substantial
change that has apparently occurred since the Dames & Moore report is the replacement
of the large garage door on Channing Avenue with aluminum framed fenestration.
CMR:239:02 Page i of 3
However, this change did not alter the basic architecture of the building and is
consequently reversible.
The historic character-defining features of the building include the overall form
composed of two contrasting parts (the sales and service structure at the rear and the glass
showroom at the front), the projecting stucco string course that unites the two parts, the
wood bow-truss roof of the rear portion, the flaring roof of the showroom, the modernist
pattern of the showroom fenestration, the distinctive aluminum window dividers
displaying raised ridges down the center, the steel sash on the north and south elevations,
the two garage openings, and the extensive industrial sash at the rear of the building.
DISCUSSION
The finding by the HRB that the building meets the definition of a Category 2 historical
structure is consistent with the evaluation of the City’s historic survey consultant, Dames
& Moore, that the building retains its basic integrity, and appears eligible for the National
Register of Historic Places at the local level of Significance under Criterion C
(Design/Construction) as "a characteristic example of an important building type, an
automobile showroom and sales building, most examples of which have been remodeled,-
designed by the important Palo Alto architect, Birge Clark" (see Attachments.A and B).
The building is also eligible for the National Register under Criterion A (Event) as a
representative of the rapidly expanding automobile business of the postwar period. Staff
recommends that Attachments A and B to this report be adopted by the City Council as
the basis of the designation.
Regulatory consequences to this property if the Council chooses to accept the Board’s
recommendation include:
Upon designation in Category 2, demolition of the building at 900 High Street, and
located in the downtown CD zone, would be prohibited unless certain conditions were
met as set forth in PAMC 16.49.060.
Upon designation in Category 2, the Architectural Review Board review of proposed
alterations or additions to the building would be required to include referral to the
Historic Resources Board for recommendations, as provided in PAMC 16.49.050
(1)(A).
Upon designation in category 2, the building would be subject to maintenance
regulations for historic structures as set forth in PAMC 16.49.080 and the
enforcement provisions set forth in 16.49.090.
HISTORIC RESOURCES BOARD REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATION
The HRB, at its meeting on April 17, 2002, reviewed the application for the historic
designation of the building at 900 High Street (see Attachment E). The applicant, Steve
Pierce, representing the property owners, informed the Board that the purpose of the
designation application is to qualify the building for the City’s Transfer of Development
CMR:239:02 Page 2 of 3
Rights program. The HRB unanimously voted (6-0-0-1, Mario absent) to support the
staff recommendation for designation of 900 High Street as a Category 2 historic building
and to forward the Board’s recommendation to the City Council. The Board’s
recommendation was based on consideration of the definitions of the Historic Categories
and the criteria for designation found in Palo Alto Municipal Code Chapter. 16.49, and on
consideration of the Dames & Moore historic survey evaluation of the building.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Historic Resources Board staff report of April 17, 2002, w/o attachments
Attachment B: Evaluation of the Building at 900 High Street by Dames & Moore, March
24, 2000
Attachment C: Current Photograph of the Building at 900 High Street
Attachment D: Drawing of the Original Building by Clark and Stromquist, Palo Alto
Times, December 13, 1946
Attachment E: Verbatim Minutes of the HRB Meeting of April- 17, 2002
PREPARED BY: ..~~~~~~--~__
DENNIS BACKLUND
Histodc Preservation Planner
DEPARTMENT HEAD REVIEW: ~~~lt~~~~
~’STEVE EMSLIE
Director of Planning and Community Environment
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
EMILY HARRISON
Assistant City Manager
Historic Resources Board
Steve Pierce, 209 Cowper Street, Palo Alto, CA 94301
John and Carole Bettencourt, P.O. Box 419, Palo Alto, CA 94302
David Bubenik, 420 Homer Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301
CMR:239:02 Page 3 of 3
Attachment A 2
Historic Resources Board
Staff Report
,Date:April 17, 2002
Historic Resources Board
From:
Subject:
Dennis Backlund,
Historic Preservation Planner
Department: Planning and
Community Environment
900 High Street [02-HRB-01]: Application by Steve Pierce in behalf of
the Santana Family for Board review of a proposal to designate a
building designed by Birge Clark in 1946 to the City ofPalo Alto’s
Historic Buildings Inventory, and Board recommendation to the City
Council of a Historic Category number for the building as provided in
Municipal Code Chapter 16.49 (Historic Preservation Ordinance).
RECOMMENDATION
Staffrecommends that the Historic Resources Board recommend that the City Council
designate the property located at 900 High Street as a significant building in Category 2
consistent with the criteria for designation of historic structures inMunicipal Code
Section 16.49.040(b), the definition of Historic Category 2 in Section 16.49.020(b), and
consistent with the finding of the City’s historic survey consultant, Dames & Moore, that
the building retains its historic integrity and appears eligible for the National Register of
Historic Places under Criteria A (Events) and C (Design/Construction) at the local level
of significance.
THE HISTORIC PROPERTY
The Building
The building located at 900 High Street at the comer of Channing Avenue (see
Attachment A) was designed by Birge Clark and Walter Stromquist in 1946 and built by
Wells P. Goodenough. It is described on the Department of Parks and Recreation Form
523A prepared by Michael Corbett of Dames & Moore in March 2000 as being "in two
parts--a large nearly windowless rectangular box at the rear and a much smaller glass
showroom at the front. The rear [portion of the] building was described on the 1949
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Sanborn map as an auto sales and repair building. It is a reinforced concrete structure
with a reinforced concrete frame and infill walls. It is covered by a wood bow-truss roof.
The interior is unfinished and has no ceiling. There are steel sash windows at the rear,
and the building is entered through large garage openings on two sides. In contrast, the
showroom consists of a sloping four sided roof (wider at the street, tapering toward the
rear) over glass walls. The roof is supported on thin columns (wood or steel?). The
windows are held in aluminum framing.. These appear to be original except where the
showroom doors were altered in 1960. The two parts of the building contrast in size,
openness (solid vs. glass), exuberance (dull and utilitarian vs. modem, angular,
expressive), and purpose (work vs. sales)."
Historic Evaluation by Dames & Moore
In 1997, the San Francisco consulting firm of Dames & Moore, Inc. undertook a formal
historic survey of the entire City of Palo Alto. By January 1999, Dames & Moore had
found 900 High Street to be potentially eligible for the National Register of Historic
Places under Criterion C (Design/Construction). In March, 2000, after further research,
the text of the final DPR 523A Form for the building was completed (see Attachment B),
with a finding that the building appears eligible for the National Register of Historic
Places under both Criterion. A (Events--as representing "the booming car business of the
post-war period"), and Criterion C (Design/Construction--as representing "an important
building type, an automobile showroom and sales building, most examples of which have
been remodeled, designed by the important Palo Alto architect, Birge Clark"). Although
Dames & Moore’s DPR 523A Form reflects the entire range of scholarly approaches to a
historic property required by the survey standards of the State Office of Historic
Preservation, the section most closely related to the designation application before the
Historic Resources Board is the Evaluation that contains the determination that 900 High
Street is architecturally significant at the National Register level. This would qualify the
building for a Category 2 designation. For, as shown below, the definition of a Category
2 building contained in MC Chapter 16.49 requires major architectural significance.
Alterations: 1946-1999 (Alterations Included in the Dames & Moore Evaluation)
Staff has reviewed the architects’ .1946 drawing of the building (see Attachment C), the
i 946 footprint plan by Clark and Stromquist (see Attachment D), the 1949 County of
Santa Clara Tax Card for the property (see Attachment E), and a 1957 photograph of the
north elevation of the showroom (see Attachment F). Staff also reviewed the existing
building on site. Staff has concluded that the following alterations took place between
1946 and 1999:
¯A long extensively fenestrated addition (non-historic) was made to the south elevation
of the building in 1.953;
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¯A wooden panel replaced a garage door to the left of the showroom facing High
Street;
4 aluminum doors to the showroom and three transom windows over the doors were
added (replacing the original doors) in 1960 (there was apparently only one entry to
the showroom originally which was located on the south side of the showroom--see
Attachment D). One of the two later doors on High Street was replaced with a glass
panel;
A wood panel replaced the lower p~rtion of glass on the south elevation of the
showroom;
One wide vertical aluminum muntin and one .wide horizontal aluminum muntin were
added to the south elevation of the showroom (original aluminum muntins all have a
decorative ridge down the center).
Two louvered transom windows were added to the north elevation of the showroom;
A wood panel (under the existing air conditioner) replaced glass on the north elevation
of the showroom;
Air conditioning equipment was added to the roof of the showroom;
¯The glass of the industrial steel sash at the rear of the building (facing the alley off
Channing Avenue) was painted to match the building.
Alterations: Since 1999 (Alterations After the Dames & Moore Evaluation)
¯A door (painted white with a logo and the inscription "Creamery") was added to the
large wood panel to the left of the south elevation of the showroom;
¯The garage door on the rear of the north (Channing Avenue) elevation was replaced
with aluminum fenestration.
¯Additional air conditioning equipment was added to the roof of the showroom.
Staff concluded that these three changes likely did not remove the National Register
eligibility established by Dames & Moore because they did not result in alteration to the
original basic architectural design of the building.
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Criteria for Designation and Definition of Historic Category 2
Chapter 16.49, Section 16.49.040 (b) provides general criteria that apply to all historic
designations in Palo Alto. The criteria are:
1.The structure or site is identified with the lives of historic people or with important
events in the city, state or nation;
2.The structure or site is particularly representative of an architectural style or way of
life important to the city, state or nation;
3. The structure or site is an example of a type of building which was once common,
but is now rare;
4. The structure or site is connected with a business or use which was once common,
but is now rare;
5. The architect or building was important;
6. The structure or site contains elements demonstrating outstanding attention to
architectural design, detail, materials or craftsmanship.
Chapter 16.49, Section 16.49.020 (b) (definitions of the Categories) establishes the level
of importance of properties that meet the general criteria for designation. The focus of
the definitions of the Categories is on architectural significance. Category 2 structures are
defined as follows:
Category 2: "Major building" means any building or group of buildings of major
regional importance, meritorious works of the best architects or an outstanding
example of an architectural style or the stylistic development of architecture in the
state or region. A major building may.have some exterior modifications, but the
original character is retained.
SUMMARY
¯ Based on an analysis of the criteria for designation and the definition of Historic Category
2 found in MC Chapter 16.49, and a consideration of the Dames & Moore Historic
Evaluation, staff concludes that 900 High Street meets all the criteria for designation, and
best fits the definition of a Category 2 building in that: it represents the post-war
evolution of the south-of-downtown commercial/light industrial area (Criterion 1); it
represents a basically intact example of a once-typical form of commercial building, the
automobile showroom and sales building (Criteria 2 and 3); its history represents the
once-dominant automobile industry in the greater downtown area (Criterion 4); it retains
its overall design and. much of its Moderne fenestration pattern with decorative aluminun
muntins, (Criterion 6); and its architect, Birge Clark, is of great local significance
(Criterion 5). The building is consistent with the definition of a Category 2 building in
that it retains its basic integrity, and appears eligible for the National Register of Historic
Places at the local level of significance under Criterion C (Design/Construction).
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ATTACHMENTS "
Attachment A: Current Photograph of 900 High Street.
.Attachment B: Dames & Moore DPR Form 523A.
Attachment C: The 1946 Drawing of the Building by Clark and Stromquist.
Attachment D: The 1946 Building Footprint Plan by Clark and Stromquist (under
separate cover).
Attachment E: The 1949 Santa Clara County Tax Card for the 900 High Street.
Attachment F: A 1957 Photograph of the North Elevation of the Showroom.
COURTESY COPIES
Steve Pierce
Zane MacGregor & Co.
209 Cowper Street
Palo Alto, CA 94301
John and Carole Bettencourt
P.O. Box 419
Palo Alto CA 94302
David Bubenik
420 Homer Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301
PREPARED BY:
Dennis Backlund
Historic Preservation Planner
~r
s:\plan\plandivkhrb\staffreporthHRB staffrep, template.Page 5
Attachment B
Page 1 of 4 *Resource Name or #: (Assigned by recorder) 900 Hi.qh St
P1.
P2.
Other Identifier: 900 Hi.qh St
Location: [] Not for Publication ® Unrestricted *a: County Santa Clara
and (P2c,P2e, and P2b or P2d. Attach Location Map as necessary.)
*b. USGS 7.5’ Quad Palo Alto, CA Date 1991 T ~; R ~; ¼ of m¼ of Sec ¯B,M.
c. Address 900 High St City Palo Alto Zip 94301
d.UTM: (Give more than one for large and/or linear resources) Zone ~; mE/~ mN
*e.Other Locational Data: (e.g., parcel #, directions to resource, elevation, etc., as appropriate) APN 120 28 049
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries)
The building at 900 High Street is located at the northwest end of a I.arge lot at the south corner of High Street and Channing
Avenue. The building occupies nearly half the lot, with the other half a paved parking lot. The building itself is in two parts
-- a large nearly windowless rectangular box at the rear and a much smaller glass showroom at the front. The rear building was
described on the 1949 Sanborn map as an auto sales and repair building. It is a reinforced concrete structure with a reinforced
concrete frame and infill walls. It is covered by a wood bow-truss roof. The interior is unfinished and has no ceiling. There
are steel sash windows at the rear, and the building is entered through large garage openings on two sides. In contrast, the
showroom consists of a sloping four sided roof (wider at the street, tapering toward the rear) over glass walls. The rbof is
’supported on thin columns (wood or steel?). The windows are held in aluminum framing. These appear to be original except
where the showroom doors were altered in 1960.
The two parts of the building contrast in size, openness (solid vs. glass), exuberance (dull and utilitarian vs. modern, angular,
expressive), and purpose (work vs. sales).
*P3b Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) HP6 1-3 story commercial building
*P4. Resources Present: [] Building [] Structure [] Object [] Site [] District [] Element of Distri(~t [] Other (isolates, etc.)
report and other sources, or enter "none".)
P5b. Description of Photo:
(View, date, accession #)
900 Hiqh St; view southwest;
09/16/99; by B. Vahey; roll BRV-83,
neq #20
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and
Source:[] Historic
[] Prehistoric [] Both
1946; Palo Alto Times
*P7. Owner and Address:
John & Carole Bettencourt
PO Box 419 Palo Alto CA 94302
*P8. Recorded by: (Name,
affiliation, and address)
Michael Corbett, Dames & Moore
221 Main Street, Suite 600
San Francisco, CA 94105
*P9. Date Recorded:
March 24, 2000
*P10. Survey Type: (Describe)
Intensive
Pll. Report Citation*: (Cite survey
Palo Alto Historic Survey Update (Corbett and Bradley for Dames & Moore, 2000)
*Attachments: [].NONE [] Location Map [] Sketch Map [] Continuation Sheet [] Building, Structure and Object Record
[] Archaeological Record [] District Record [] Linear Feature Record [] Milling Station Record [] Rock Art Record
[] Artifact Record [] Photograph Record [] Other (List)
DPR 523A (1/95)/ HIGH900.F1 *Required information.
Page 2 of ~
B1.
B2.
B3.
*B5.
*B6.
*NRHP Status Code
*Resource-Name or # (Assigned by recorder) 900 High St
Historic Name: Palo Alto Nash Company
Common Name:
Original Use:B4, Present Use: 1-3 story commercial building
Architectural Style: Modern
Construction History: (Construction date, alterations, and date of alterations)
1946: Built (Palo Alto Times)
1953: Addition
3S
*B7.
*B8.
Moved? [] No [] Yes [] Unknown Date:Original Location:
Related Features:
B9a.
*.B 10.
Architect: Birqe Clark and Walter Stromquist b. Builder: W.P. Goodenou,qh
Significance: Theme A: post World War II automobile business, C: by Bir,qe Clark Area Palo Alto
Period of Significance 1946-1962 Property Type commercial Applicable Criteria A and C
(Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural context as defined by theme, period, and geographic scope. Also address integrity.)
History
Site: The Plat of the Town of Palo Alto dated 1894 shows the half of Block A west of High yet to be subdivided. By the Map
of the City of Pa/o Alto ca. 1917, the lot on which the Palo Alto Nash Company garage and showrooms would eventually be
built had already acquired its current dimensions. According to the City Map of ca. 1917, the site was at that time the location
of a factory or mill.
Structure: The Palo Alto Times printed, on 27 February 1946, a building permit notice that reported that Birge Clark and Walter
Stromquist were architects and Wells P. Goodenough was builder of a new $28,000 garage at 900 High for R.S. Bullis, the
owner. The Palo Alto City Directory did not list the address in the edition of 1948, but it did list Dick and Lorna Bullis as the
proprietors of the Palo Alto Nash Company, so the building may well have been in operation by that time and the directorymay
be in error. The Palo Alto Times printed, on 9 April 1953, another building permit notice that reported that W.P. Goodenough
was builder for a commercial garage addition for R.S. and L.S. Bullis whom the notice identified as lessees. The Tax Assessor
noted that this addition cost $20,000. The Assessor’s records note that the showroom doors were removed in 1960 at a cost
of $750.
See continuation sheet
Bl1.
*B12.
B13.
Additional Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes)
References:
See continuation sheet,
Remarks:
*B14. Evaluator: Michael Corbett
Date of Evaluation: March 24, 2000
(This space reserved for official comments)
(Sketch map with north arrow required)
DPR 523B (1/95) HIGH900.F1 *Required Information
Page_3 of 4 Resource Identifier: 900 Hi,qh St
Recorded by Michael Corbett/Steve Hardy (history) *Date March 24. 2000 [] Continuation. [] Update
History (continued)
Use: The Palo Alto City Directory first listed the garage and showroom at 900 High as the location of the Pal~ Alto Nash
Company from 1950 to 1957. An advertisement was printed in the Palo Alto Times, on 13 December 1946, that showed an
architects rendering of the "new, up-to-the-minute garage, shops, and Nash showroom." That advertisement emphasized the
auto servicing aspects of the operation. From 1958 to 1960 or 1961, the building was occupied by Fred Hudkins, Inc., an
automobile dealer. Leonard Ely Chrysler-Plymouth occupied the building in 1962. In recent years, the building has been
occupied by the Peninsula Creamery, an old Palo Alto business.
Evaluation
This building, at 900 High Street, appears eligible for the NRHP under criteria A and C at the local level of significance. The
period of significance is 1946 to about 1962, as long as it lasted as a car business.
Under criterion A, this represents the booming car business of the post-war period.
Under criterion C, 1;his is a characteristic example of an important building type, an automobile showroom and s.ales building,
most examples of which have been remodeled, designed by the important Palo Alto architect, Birge Clark.
References
California Office of Historic Preservation, Instructions for Nominating Historical Resources to the California Register of Historic
Resources, Sacramento, CA. August 1997.
Map of the City of Palo Alto. ca. 1917.
Palo Alto City Directory. 1948-1957.
Palo Alto Historic Survey Update. Property File.
Palo Alto Times. 27 February 1946, 13 December 1946, 9 April 1953.
Plat of the Town of Palo Alto. 1894.
Sanborn Map Company. Insurance Maps of Palo Alto. New York: 1924; revisions to 1949.
Santa Clara County. Tax Assessor. Assessment Record. 1949, 1954, 1961, 1967.
United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service. National Register Bulletin 15: How to Apply the National Register.
Criteria for Evaluation.
DPR 523L (1/95) HIGH9OO,F1 *Required Information
Page ~4 of 4.~__ *Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) 900 Hiah St
*Map Name: Palo Alto Plannina Dept. GIS *Scale: 1":80’ *Date of Map: 1999
DPR 523J
Attachment C
900 High Street
Attachment D C
This is the architect’s drawing of our new, up-to-the-minute garage, shops, and
~. Nash showroom. Birge Clark and Walter ~tromquist were our architects and
.Wells P. Goodenough our b.ilder.
Regardless of the Job,
We Always Tidy Up Your Car
Whenever your car is serviced in our garage its upholster-
ing and floors are given a thorough vacuuming by one of the
most powerful automobile vacuums yo.’ve ever seen. It
really CLEANS.
This extra service is lust part of the fair deal you get
at Bullis and Black, Nash.
Bullis and Black
PALO ALTO
COMPANY
High at Channing Telephone 6650
City of Palo Alto
HRB
Meeting of April 17, 2002
Attachment E
HISTORIC RESOURCES BOARD
Draft Verbatim Minutes
April 17, 2002
900 High Street [02-HRB-01]: Application by Steve Pierce in behalf of the Santana Family for
Board review of a proposal to designate a building designed byBirge Clark in 1946 to the City
of Palo Alto’s Historic Buildings Inventory, and Board recommendation to the City Council of a
Historic Category number for the building as provided in Municipal Code Chapter 16.49
(Historic Preservation Ordinance).
Chair Haviland: The next item on the agenda is 900 High Street, application by Steve Pierce, in
behalf of the Santana Family, for Board review of a proposal to designate a building designed by
Birge Clark in 1946 to the City ofPalo Alto’s Historic Buildings Inventory, and Board
recommendation to the City Council of a Historic Category number for the building as provided
in Municipal Code Chapter 16.49 (Historic Preservation Ordinance). Is there a staff report on
this item?
Staff Caporgno: Thank you, Madam Chair. Dennis will give a brief staff report before the
applicant gives his presentation, thank you.
StaffBacklund: Thank you, Madam Chair, members of the Board. The applicant, Steve Pierce,
is proposing anew Category 2 resource for our Historic Inventory, located at 900 High Street.
And this is a property thatwas the subject of an intensive survey study by Dames and Moore.
And they looked at the property, as a survey must do, in the context of the type of building it is
and how many have survived in the area, and whether there is a usage significance in the area
which they found there is, that this was an auto district. It [the district] expanded its auto
showrooms and garages in the post war period as the automobile usage greatly increased. And
this was one of the first buildings that was built for this expanded usage of the automobile right
after World War II. In fact, it went up just a year after the war ended. And Dames and Moore
noted that most auto showrooms and garages have been very much altered for other kinds of
usages. We do have one other one here in Palo Alto that’s already been designated to the
Inventory, and it is also by Birge Clark from 1936--and that’s the one that we know so well that
is on the comer of Homer Avenue and High Street, the old Pontiac showroom.
This one [900 High Street] like that one, has a utilitarian section that was the garage workshop,
which is the larger part, and then the smaller part which is the old Nash showroom. And we
provided a drawing which is the only thing that we could locate in the Palo Alto Historical
Association files or in the Palo Alto Times. I researched the Palo Alto Times which Dames and
Moore did not because that takes a long time; you don’t know where an ad or a photograph may
turn up. So I went through a lot of issues searching and the only thing that I found was the ad
that is Attachment C. And that is just a very conceptual drawing. It’s not very clear what the
entrance doors were like, but I think we can presume from seeing the original aluminum
mullions on the glass showroom part that they were narrower and less prominent than the more
City of Palo Alto
HRB
Meeting of April 17, 2002 2
modem mullions that have been introduced here and there on the showroom. And in the
drawing, they 10ok very thin, indeed.
Dames and Moore, in trying to decide on the character-defining features of this building, decided
that the overall general character is the modem architectural style that triumphed everywhere
after World War II; aside from that the style has a dual character. There is the large very
utilitarian garage section in the back that does not pretend to any artistic type of design but rather
is a utility structure.. And that contrasts with the more artistic approach oftheshowroom section
where the roof flares up slightly and flares outward in that modeme fashion, and is also all glass
as opposed to the solid stucco of the rear portion.
The drawing in Attachment C does show the garage door opening on Channing that is not there
now. And the garage door is open in the drawing, and you can see that industrial sash shining
away in the rear of the garage. And that sash has been painted over but it is still intact. If there
¯ was a wish to return that to its original appearance, it’s merely a matter of a paint remover on
those windows to get it back.
We provided there on the walls some additional photographs than the overall single image that
you have in the staff report. We also provided in the staff report a list of all of the alterations
because the Historic Preservation Ordinance in Section 16.491040 (e) asks for any application for
designation to include the following information: what restoration, if any, would be necessary to
return the structure, site, or district to its original appearance? And to answer that, I provided a
page of alterations that tries to distinguish the alterations that Dames and Moore reviewed--and
still found the building to be eligible for the National Register--from three alterations that appear
to have occurred since the Dames and Moore survey.
The Dames and Moore survey refers specifically to garage openings through which the rear
portion of the building, the stucco portion is entered. And Dames and Moore says those garage
openings are on both sides of the building, which would mean the High Street elevation and the
Channing Avenue elevation, which are the only two locations where there were garage door
openings. As the left-hand photo in your staff report shows, there has been an aluminum in-fill
there, where there was a garage door. However, they did it in the way that we recommended, or
the Board recommended, for in-fill at 539 Alma: that it be set inside the original opening so that
the architecture of the garage opening is still there which lessens the impact of the change, and
also makes the change reversible because you could simply remove the set of windows and
introduce a door if it was returned to automobile usage.
Then in the showroom section, that’s where most of the other alterations have occurred. And I
noted in the staff report, if you were able to go to the site, you would have seen these aluminum
window dividers with the ridge down the middle so they are decorative mullions. That’s what all
the original ones were, and you could make out the altered ones which are for the 4 doors that
they introduced in 1960. They really do have the appearance of door openings that come later
than 1960, but I do recall some of these aluminum doors that did go in around 1960, and I saw
them go in. They look just like the ones that you would see going in today; the way of doing this
has not very much changed.
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Meeting of April 17, 2002 3
There is on High Street a change to one of those doors where they took out the door and just
installed a piece of plate glass, but you can see the outline of the original door that is now kind of
a glass panel. Since that occurred in 1960, that change to those doors is how 40-odd years old
and within a few years, it could be considered a historic change in and of itself. We don’t know
when those louvered windows went in on the Channing Street elevation--you can see them there
in the photograph on the right and also the photograph on the left. Those do interrupt the
original moderne pattern of those windows. However, very clearly, those went in, if not in 1960,
they went in well before the Dames and Moore survey, and that study .was completed on the site
of the building. So, they saw everything that has occurred.
Then on the left-hand side, in the center photo there, the bottom part of the windows, the glass
panes, have been painted over white as kind of the rtmning logo of the Peninsula Creamery.
Then underneath one of the windows there’s also a wood panel. There’s a kind of a stove
structure on the interior, and the change from glass might have been caused by that. But Dames
and Moore also saw that because it’s clearly been there for many years. And they did a couple of
mullion changes there at the rear of that left-hand elevation of the showroom that Dames and
Moore also saw.
So, the Category 2 definition says that there can be some changes but "the overall character of
the building is maintained." That’s the finding that you have to make for Category 2 and Dames
and Moore saw all of these changes and said it is still National Register-eligible. In the future, if
any of these features were restored back to what they were in the past, that could be done; it
would be National Register at an even higher level, but it is National Register now. And that
means that it would automatically be eligible for Category 2 that talks about buildings at State
and National levels, which this, is according to Dames and Moore, is.
Staff had to make the determination about the three later changes:.
(1) There is a photo that I will hand around to the Board that shows this white door that has been
introduced. I think you probably saw that on-site but I will hand the photo around so you can see
it there at the left of the left elevation of the showroom. And I have a second view that shows
that door that I will put on the pedestal here for any interested members of the public that would
like to see it. Since that door is occurring in a panel that is already a later alteration that’s been
there a long time and that Dames and Moore did see, we regarded it as simply an alteration to an
alteration. It mainly stands out because of the starkly contrasting colbr. If it were painted in a
rehabilitation plan at some future point, it would become almost invisible on the panel.
(2) The extra roof equipment is not a pre-possessing sight on the roof of the showroom. It would
be better if it were not there, but Dames and Moore did see roof equipment. There is more there
now than what tl~ey saw but it’s the same kind that Dames and Moore did see. It is a reversible
change. At some future time, roof equipment, in a restoration if that were proposed, could be
moved perhaps to the roof of the stucco portion behind the parapet, and an applicant would have
to assess the feasibility of that at a future time.
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Meeting of April 17, 2002 4
(3) The largest change is the in-fill of the garage door on Channing, and it is mostly prominent
because of the aluminum mullions. The window frames in the industrial sash and in that original
group of windows that’s just behind the showroom there on the photo on the fight (you can see
them clearly), those are original from Birge Clark’s design and they’ve been painted to match the
building. I don’t know exactly what color they were when they were original. They may have
been that kind of dark, bronze color that some of this sash is historically. But there is nothing to
prevent the aluminum mullions in the garage opening from being painted to match the building
at a future time. It would be good eventually if all .of the [unpainted] aluminum that you saw
were only at the showroom section because it would preserve that contrast between the back part
of the building and the front part of the building that Dames and Moore cites as character-
defining. So, with very minor changes, the integrity of the building could be enhanced further.
So, we provided the Dames and Moorereport that gives you the history of the site, the history of
the usage, the architect involved, all of that information with their findings that it is also eligible
[for the National Register] under Criterion A, as well as C which is architecture (which is closely
related to what you need for a Category 2). Besides that, it’s eligible under Criterion A as an
exemplar of the booming po.st-war car business and one of the first structures representing that
trend.
So in the "Summary" section of the staff report we summed up all of the reasons why we believe
that it is eligible for a Category 2 in that it meets all of the six criteria in our Historic
Preservation Ordinance and it meets the special definition of a Category 2 building that
emphasizes architectural importance,, and that importance was approved by Dames and Moore.
That being a survey certified by the State Office of Preservation, staff has accepted their finding
as meeting our Ordinance requirements for a Category 2. And now we look forward to the
Board’s and the public’s comments.
Chair Haviland: Thank you, Dennis. Is there a presentation by the.applicant?
Steve Pierce, Applicant: [response not miked; he declined a presentation]
Chair Haviland: Thank you very much. Questions from the Board? Marty?
Vice Chair Bemstein: I have a question for Steve. I see on the form, it also lists the third person,
the Bettencourt Family, I believe.
Steve Pierce, Applicant: Correct.. Actually the Santana Family, which includes the Bettencourts,
are owners.
Vice Chair Bemstein: My question is, why is the owner interested in bringing this building to
the Historic. Resources Board?
Steve Pierce, Applicant: The primary motivation here is actually to capture the TDR’s which
will be transferred to another site owned by the Santana’s adjacent to this.
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Meeting of April 17, 2002 5
Vice Chair Bemstein: Thank you.
Chair Haviland: Are there any other questions? Are there any members of the public here who
would like to speak on this item? Apparently not. Are there any comments or any one who
wishes to make a motion at this point? Carol?
BM Murden: I move ~that 900 High Street be designated a Category 2 building on the City of
Palo Alto’s Historic Buildings Inventory for the reasons given in the staff report, which I think
are very well put. I think the building has had some minor changes to it, but once you see the
original photograph and you look at the building, you can certainly imagine it as it was originally
and it becomes very obvious why it was built. So, I think it has kept its historic character.
Vice Chair Bemstein: I second that motion.
Chair Haviland: Any other comments before we vote? Michael?
BM Makinen: I just had a question on what is the applicant’s future plans for the building?
Steve Pierce, Applicant: [response not miked]
Chair Haviland: Roger?
BM Kohler: Well, once it’s categorized 2 then whatever is done there comes back to the Board
for review. I just wanted to ask the owner if they have the little mini-cow available anywhere?
[Referring to the statue of a cow in a historic photo of 900 High Street.]
Steve Pierce, Applicant: [response not miked]
BM Kohler:. Okay, I’ll come look at that. I thought it was a dog at first.
Steve Pierce, Applicant: [response not miked]
Chair Haviland: Any other comments? Beth?
BM Bunnenberl~: Well, it’s simply that I walked the site and was very delighted to see the
building and how basically few changes [there have been] when you consider. I did wonder, are
there further windows where the elongated piece attaches to it? Are there any windows back in
the original building? And I would be talking not the Channing side, but the...
James Santana: Are you talking about in the alley?
BM Bunnenberg: No, I looked at the alley and I know those. Are there more of these windows?
[Referring to a photo of windows on the south elevation.]
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Meeting of April 17, 2002
James Santana: There are those windows, that’s it. There’s those and then there’s one in the alley
and along the shop.
BM Btmnenberg: All right. So what I was seeing was a reflection [in the photo], not additional
windows past this wall?
James Santana: Well, there are windows therel They run along the whole face of what was the
shop [referring to the 1953 addition on High Street].
BM Bunnenberg: Oh, okay. Thank you.
Chair Haviiand: Well, I always appreciate seeing buildings of this particular era being brought
forward because I think this is a style of architecture that is sort of currently under appreciated
but is coming to be more and more appreciated, and I think it’s just a wonderful little building.
And I have one littlecomment, though; about the Dames and Moore characterization of it. I
don’t think it is simply just a contrast of one building form with another. I think that the architect
deliberately tried to have a sort of interpenetration of the two volumes which is expressed clearly
along the Channing elevation with a continuation of the edge of the roof as a feature strip along
the alignment elevation.
So, it’s actually, even though it is very small and it’s very simple, it’s much more complex than
just two forms butted up against another, and I think it’s actually a very elegant little building. It
might not appear that way right now but it could certainly be restored into something that was
really absolutely gorgeous. If there are no more comments, I think we’re ready to vote. All those
in favor?
All: Aye.
Chair Haviland: Those opposed? [silence] And the motion is carried.
Historic Resources Board Action: Murden, seconded by Bunnenberg, moved the staff
recommendation that the building at 900 High Street be designated by the City Council as a
Category 2 building on the City’s Historic Inventory.
Vote: 6-0-0-1 (Mario absent)