Conservancy News

The Santa Monica Conservancy has received one of twelve prestigious Governor’s Historic Preservation Awards. On the heels of receiving a Preservation Design Award from the California Preservation Foundation (CPF), this makes two awards for the Preservation Resource Center at the Shotgun House. The Governor’s Award is presented annually to projects, individuals and the organizations whose contributions demonstrate exception achievements in historic preservation.

Left to right: Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer Jenan Saunders, City of Santa Monica Director of Community & Cultural Services Karen Ginsberg, Mario Fonda-Bonardi, AIA, Santa Monica Conservancy President Carol Lemlein, Director of California State Parks Lisa Mangat.

The Governor’s Office presented the award to Conservancy President Carol Lemlein in appreciation of the rehabilitation of the Shotgun House, deemed “an outstanding example of community participation in the preservation of a treasured California resource . . . Unlike other preservation awards, this one emphasizes involvement by community groups; and it recognizes a broad array of preservation activities, from building rehabilitation to archaeology, education, and preservation planning.”

Preservation Resource Center. Photo credit Stephen Schafer.

Established in 1986, these awards are presented under the sponsorship of the California Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) and California State Parks, in the belief that the history of California is embodied in its buildings, structures, sites, and objects that provide tangible links to the people and events that shaped the state’s growth and development. Since its inception, more than 200 projects have been awarded.

At the October 25th City Council meeting, Santa Monica’s most important preservation incentive was granted to the owners of two designated city landmarks, 504 Pier Avenue and 305 Alta Avenue, and six contributing structures within the San Vicente Boulevard Courtyard Apartments Historic District.  A Mills Act contract enables a property tax reduction for owners who commit to an approved plan of restoration and maintenance.

The properties represent a diverse selection of Santa Monica’s recently designated structures. The two-story E.J. Vawter house at 504 Pier is a rare hybrid example of Queen Anne and American Foursquare styles. It was designated a City Landmark in September 2014 based on its unique architecture, association with the locally prominent Vawter family, and exemplary representation of the shift from rural to urban culture in Ocean Park during the early 20th century.

The two-story Mel Uhl house at 305 Alta is a Mediterranean/Classical Revival-styled single-family residence. It was designated in August 2015 as an embodiment of the early development of the Palisades Tract and as an excellent example of its architectural style.

The San Vicente Historic District was designated in December 2015 as Santa Monica’s most significant and cohesive concentration of architecturally noteworthy courtyard buildings constructed between 1930 and 1953 featuring abundant open green space and harmonious scale.  The contributing buildings represent a variety of architectural styles on San Vicente Blvd.:

• 150-156, Overcliff Manor, a Mid-Century Modern apartment complex
• 212, the only Streamline Moderne-styled apartment complex in the district
• 234, Villa Vicente, a Mid-Century Modern apartment complex
• 302-312, The Nida Apartments, one of the few American Colonial Revival-styled complexes in the district
• 437-441, a Minimal Traditional apartment complex
• 614-618, an apartment complex combining American Colonial Revival style with Hollywood Regency elements in a stylistic courtyard setting

These properties bring the City’s total number of Mills Act contracts to 71, with the reduction in the City’s property tax receipts for these six properties estimated at $34,745 beginning in FY 2017-2018.  The actual amount of the property tax reduction will be set by the County Tax Assessor’s office, which must determine the value of the historic property based upon its current net operating income, rather than upon the traditional assessed valuation method, resulting, in most cases, in a property tax reduction.

Last week the Santa Monica Conservancy welcomed its 1000th and 1001st visitors, Mike and Megan Lampkin of Santa Monica, to its Preservation Resource Center in Ocean Park. The Lampkins are originally from the Bay area, and although they are neighbors and have walked the neighborhood many times, this was their first visit to the Shotgun House. The couple was presented with a book about shotgun houses.

Mike and Megan Lampkin. Photo by docent Shannon Ryan.

Since opening in January, the Preservation Resource Center has been visited by local residents as well as guests from other states and countries (Australia, Germany and Colombia to name a few). One visitor, former resident Karen Noonan, shared her experiences of actually living in this Shotgun House in the 1960s, nearly 60 years before it was rehabilitated and re-purposed by the Conservancy.

A primary goal of the Center is to assist property owners and the community with information about the methods and benefits of preservation. This year at least five homeowners were assisted in understanding the requirements for formal designation of their historic properties and two are now preparing applications. “Providing such assistance demonstrates the value of our Center as a readily accessible resource for preservation help,” notes Conservancy president Carol Lemlein.

Adding to its recent milestone, the Conservancy will receive a Preservation Design Award from the California Preservation Foundation (CPF) at its gala on September 29th. The award is for the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the 1890s Shotgun House as a Preservation Resource Center. The 25 winning projects are recognized for their exemplary work in historic preservation, restoration, rehabilitation, sustainability, studies, reports and other significant categories in the preservation field and showcase preservation design excellence.

The Preservation Resource Center is open to the public from 11 am to 2 pm every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday as well as by appointment.

The City of Santa Monica is currently updating its Historic Resources Inventory (HRI), a database which lists existing and potential historic resources throughout the City and provides an important foundation for the implementation of the Historic Preservation Program. Two professional consulting firms, Architectural Resources Group and Historic Resources Group, will survey structures built through 1977 and develop historical context statements describing neighborhood, architectural, cultural, and social history. The new survey is expected to be released in spring 2017.

Your participation helps ensure that the HRI takes the broadest possible look at our built environment and the places that illustrate important aspects of Santa Monica’s history! Learn more at historicsamo.squarespace.com. Click here to contribute what you know about the architectural, cultural and/or social history of your own neighborhood and other parts of the City. You can also download a mailable form.

Photo credit Marcello Vavala.

For example, this building on 20th Street in the Pico Neighborhood was designed in 1937 by esteemed architect Paul Williams for the first African-American physician to live and work in Santa Monica. It has not yet appeared on the Historic Resources Inventory. If designated as a landmark, it would be protected from inappropriate alterations and become eligible for benefits and incentives such as:

• Potential property tax savings through a Mills Act Contract
• Waiver of Building Plan check and permit fees
• Priority plan check processing
• Application of California State Historical Building Code to alterations, which can often avoid unnecessary additional construction costs to bring properties up to current codes

Email samosurvey@historicresourcesgroup.com to be added to the mailing list for the City’s outreach meetings and other updates. Follow the City’s progress via @historicsamo and #historicsamo on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. To view a list of FAQs, click here.

The latest Conservancy newsletter is now available online, as well as past editions. Our newsletter covers upcoming preservation events, preservation issues, features on the people and places of historic Santa Monica and much more.

In the current edition:

• September Architectural House Tour
• Preview of Fall Salon in Byers Masterpiece
• Preservation Design Award for Shotgun House
• SM Chamber Partners with Conservancy
• Five Ways to Research Your Property’s History
• More News, Reports, and Event Listings

Download the September 2016 newsletter or view past issues here.

Our newsletter is published four times per year. Conservancy members receive a copy of each new issue in the mail. If you’d like to become a member, please join today!