SR-8-A (207)
.
.
LUTM:PPD:PB:SF:AS
elemor.word.ppd
COUNCIL MEETING: April 9, 1991
J!-A
APR 9 1991
Santa Monica, California
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Staff
SUBJECT: Recommendation to Extend for 45 Days the Emergency
Moratorium on the Approval of Development Applications
for Any Residentially Zoned Property on lIth street
Between Wilshire Boulevard and Arizona Avenue and
Between llD7 and 1115 Arizona Avenue Inclusive.
INTRODUCTION
This report recommends that the city council extend for an
additional 45 days the emergency moratorium on the approval of
development applications for residentially zoned parcels on 1lth
Street between Wilshire Boulevard and Arizona Avenue and between
1107 and IllS Arizona Avenue inclusive. On February 26, 1991 the
City Council, upon the recommendation of the Planning Commission,
established a 45 day development moratorium in this neighborhood.
During the 45 days the council requested that a preliminary
eval uation of the neighborhood' s architectural and historical
significance be conducted by the City1s Historic Resources
Inventory consultant and presented to the Landmarks Commission
for their review. The Landmarks Commission's evaluation of the
area1s historic merit as well as a recommendation on the
appropriateness of long term preservation for the neighborhood
would then be forwarded to the City council.
- 1 -
f--A
APR
n ;-}~l
(~ 1i.J-.. ~
.
.
BACKGROUND
Historic Resources Inventory Process
As initiated in 1990 upon direction of the City council, the
Historic Resources Inventory project is a multi-phase process to
be completed over a two year period. The first phase involves an
update of the City's Preliminary Survey, which is a working
document that identifies all the structures that will be
researched in the Inventory. The next step is to research and
document by photograph every building identified in the
Preliminary Survey. This research is underway and is being
conducted on an area by area basis. The first three
neighborhoods to be so documented are Ocean Park, Mid City, and
North of Wilshire.
As the research for these structures is completed, an Evaluation
Committee to be composed of Landmarks Commissioners and
preservation professionals will review the material and determine
which structures will be included in the final Inventory. It is
anticipated that this process will be completed for the Mid City
survey area, where the llth Street neighborhood is located, by
late Fall 1991.
lIth Street Preliminary Evaluation
In order to obtain a preliminary evaluation of the lIth street
neighborhood prior to the completion of the Inventory for the Mid
- 2 -
-
.
City area, the Council requested that the 11th street residents
work closely with City staff and the City's Historic Resources
Inventory consultant to prepare the research needed for the
evaluation. As a result, the consultant conducted two half-day
research training sessions specifically designed for the lIth
street residents. Five lIth street residents volunteered their
time to prepare the necessary research for the consultant1s
evaluation.
Landmarks Commission Evaluation and Recommendation
Given the research timeline established within the constraints of
a 45 day moratorium, the Landmarks Commission1s evaluation of the
11th Street research and consultant report is scheduled for the
April 8, 1991 commission meeting. Therefore, the Commission's
comments and recommendation as of this report's preparation is
not known. However, in order to provide the Landmarks Commission
with the flexibility to ask additional questions regarding the
research and to deliberate on the material prepared, Planning
staff believes it is appropriate to extend the moratorium for an
additional 45 day period. This would allow the Landmarks
Commission, if it deemed necessary, to continue their
determination on the lIth street neighborhood I s historic
significance until the Commission's May 13th regular meeting.
The Commission's recommendation on whether the 11th street
neighborhood merits consideration as a historic district will
then be forwarded to City Council.
- 3 -
.
.
BUDGET/FINANCIAL IMPACT
The recommendation presented in this report does not have a
budget or fiscal impact.
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council extend the lIth street
neighborhood moratorium for an additional 45 days in order to
provide the Landmarks Commission additional time to consider the
research and consultant report.
Prepared By: Paul Berlant, Director of LUTM
Suzanne Frick, Planning Manager
Amanda Schachter, Associate Planner
Land Use and Transportation Management Department
Program and Policy Development Division
Attachments: A.
Historic Resources Inventory Consultant
Evaluation of the llth street Neighborhood
Ordinance to Extend Moratorium
B.
w/elemor
- 4 -
APR e: '9: ::=:4 LESLlIIIfUMANN 2~3 937 0:74
.
~~~ A,
P.2/4
PRELIMINAR~ EVALUATION
11TH STREET NEIGHBORHOOD
REQUEST FOR LANDJIARK DISTRICT DESIGNATION
Thi. preliminary Qvaluation of the 11th Str~@t neiohborhood as a
potsn~ial landmark dipt~iet Lg ba.ad on ~he preliminary survey of
the city of Santa Monica, reoQn~ly updat~, and on the rQ~.aroh of
specific bu.lldinqs within the neiqhbOrhood, completed by tha
reaidents. It :mUSt be undlU'stood that reg..e.arch of thAa remainder of
t.he prelixo.inary survey listingQ halil not yet. bean undertaken,
includinq tha~ of buildings within the immediatG vici~ity of 11th
St.reet.. The re!leareh provided by the resident."'" has not bean
verified, nor nae much biographical informat1on been nad~
available. Also, this evaluation i9 made ~~ the absence of
photograph5 of the street.
The potent~al dist~ict con5~sts of 10 buildings whiehwere included
in the prelimJ.nary survey and one which was nQ'C (llOSo Arizona;
altered to the point of non-contribution in its pJ:"esent si:a'te). Of
the 10 listed ~u11d1ngs, 8 can be considered architecturally and
historically contr1but1nq, while twc are compa~ible but not
contributing (125~-llth, built in the rear of 1253, prob~bly in the
1920s, in the colonial Revival style, and 1115 Arizona, built in
the rear or 1259-11thl apparently in 1925, in the spaniSh COlonial
Revival stylej. The contributing buildings; theretore, are:
1216{lS)-11th, 1 story Craftsman bungalow, built 1913
122l(23)-11th, 1 story Craftsroan bunqalow, bu~lt 1911
1226-11th, 1 story Craftsman bungalow, altered, built 1906
1229-11th, 1 story Craftsman bungalow, built 1911
1233-11th, 1 story Turn of the Century cottage w1th a later
Colonial Revival facade, bUllt 1904
1239-11.th, 1 story Turn of the Century cottage, altered, built
1905
1253-11th, 1 story Turn of the Century cottage, built 1904
1259-11th (AKA 1107 Arizona), 1 1/2 story Turn of the Century
cottage, built 1906
Architectural Evaluation
T;.to architectural themes characterize t..l1e block. The earlier, turn
of the century style, is typically modest in scale and p~etensions,
ana to one and a half stories, capped by a hiPDed roof, and box-
lika 1n proportion3. Oetail~ng t&nds ~o derive from the COlonial
Reviva.l in Qarlier examples, and usually includ~A Tuscan porch
columna, boxed eaves, Qndboard~, and occasionally d@ntil courses
and lGadad glass windows. Later cottage>> exhibited th~ influence
of the Cra.ft.sman style, inoorpQ.ra~inCJ Iiuch alQlQants as. Q.xpo~ed
rafters and tapered posts. Turn of the cent.ury cott.a;es were cuilt
in santa Mon1ca from about 1n9S until around 1908. ThQ d.n.es~
ooncentration of euch. ootta.gQS i~ in the Central 1 B9ach Tract
(Waw;l"worth, Fraser, Hart, and OCUilan Park). Craftsman bunqalows
began ~o be erected ~n Southern California about 1902. They WQra
much more horif:ontal in C!:t'ientation 'than earli$:t" ctyl.. ana
APR 01 '9: 1:.:5 LESLlIIIfUMAH~ 2:3 937 0:~4
.
P.3/4
8&chewed applied decora.tion and ma.ny hh.t:orieal references in favor
ot exposed. structural elements and an undi:!iigui5ed uzse ot l'Iaterials.
Gabled roors with deep overhangs and exposed rafters a.nd beams 1
spacious porches with tapered columns and porch walls of brick or
stone, ana bands ot windows, orten organized in groups ot three,
are typical features of craftsman bungalows. They were built in
great numbers well into the 1920S, although later examples tended
to reduce the style to a few IJs1qna'turel1 details.
The turn of the century and Craftsman homes on 11th Street are
typical of the ma~nstream of m~ddle class residential building in
Santa Monica and the surrounding commun1ties dur1ng the tirst 15
years of the 20th century. W1th the exception of 1216{~B), they
are 1ndividually undistinguished. An example of the Oriental
influence on craftsman styling, 1216 displays the characteristic
"lift" in its roof design. Although modest in size, the bungalow
is a good example of its type and is intact in its exter10r
appearance..
aistorical Evaluation
The contributing houses on 11th Street were built between 1904 and
1911 and were part of the oriqinal Santa Monica townsite. The
propert1€S shared a common history with ~uch of the area in that
they were once owned by Arcadia de Baker, widow of Colonel R.S.
BakGrl and th@n by Senator John P. Jones. Each of the houses was
built for a diff@Tent owner and/or speoulator, with common threads
p~ovided by th~ buildQrs. JA~. Rome was the builder of 1221 and
1229 and Waldo K. Cowan was the contractor for 1239 and 1259, with
CQwan and Elliot l~s~.d as the con~actor of 1233. Cowan was ~he
trealiurer 0: the Santa Monica Board of Trade. No furth~r
info:t'tlla.t~on about any of -ehe residentJ;: .u: pr9~.ntly available.
Based on what. is ourrently known, it can be sa.i.d that 11th Str..t
is repre6ent~t~ve, but PQrhap~ not the be&~ repre~ent~tive, of much
of Santa Monica of the period.
Contextual Evalua~ion
Perh~p~ the greatest strength and the 9rea~e6t weakness of the 11th
Street grouping can be 3een in ~erm8 of oontext. Clearly, it ia
one of the last rlli'!llllaining cluste.r:!! of hist.oric homee in this
section of the city ~nd may be the oldest. However, much more
dense concentrations of homes from the perJ.od, l'D.any of them
architecturally ~ore notable and aSBociated with prominent
architects or residents, are located elsewhere (the palisatle15
Tract, the central eeacn Tractl and portions o~ ocean ?ark). The
greates~ detriment to the historic district is the intrusion or
apartment houses from the 19506 and 1960S; which impair its visual
continuity. Wh1le there are a historial homes on the ~lOOK, there
are also B apartment houses. The "sense of time a.nd place"
associated w1th historic districts is dlttlcult to esta~~1sh in
view of thls pattern of development.
Reco~ep.dation
While 11th Street is notable for the numher of homes from 1904-1911
which surv1ve, it is not outstandinq in terms of its architecture
. APR ~l '9: 1:::5 LESL:4IIJUMANN 2:3 937 ~:74
.
P 4/4
or its history, as tar as it is known. While it deserves speoial
conliiideration in the plannin9 process, it does not appear to
qualify for landmark district desiqnation, except as the last
reIilaininq cluster of hOlIes from the period In the neighborhood.
.,
--+-
.
.
CA:RMM:jld566/hpc/pc
city council Meeting 4-9-91
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER l579(CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SANTA MONICA DECLARING A MORATORIUM AND
LIMITING DEVELOPMENT ON 11TH STREET BETWEEN WILSHIRE
BOULEVARD AND ARI ZONA AVENUE AND ON
1107 THROUGH 1115 ARIZONA AVENUE INCLUSIVE
AND DECLARING THE PRESENCE OF AN EMERGENCY
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Findings and Purpose. The City Council of the
City of Santa Monica finds and declares:
(a) Of the approximately thirty (30) residentially zoned
parcels located on 11th street between Wilshire Boulevard and
Arizona Avenue and located between 1107 and 1115 Arizona Avenue
at least ten (10)
are occupied by potentially historic
structures.
(b) New development projects are either approved or
pending review on three of these parcels.
(c) The preservation of the City'S historic structures has
long been considered vital to the City'S interests and necessary
so as not to impair the cultural integrity and character of the
city.
(d) The current and potential development projects in this
area may lead to the demolition of historic structures before a
- 1 -
,
....>,>'.~. '.-.... ~ -~-.. .-P !!I~,. .
... '".r_
~
"
"'"~...<;-~~~~-~
.
final decision can be made on whether these structures should be
preserved.
(e) The potential for development and demolition of these
structures poses a current and immediate threat to the public
health, safety, and welfare of the residents, and the approval of
permits for developments would result in a threat to public
health, safety, or welfare.
(f) Research on whether this neighborhood should be
considered historic and thereby preserved must be completed
before any further development occurs.
(g) Pending completion of this research and review of its
results it is necessary to halt on an interim basis approval of
any new development applications in the affected area, thereby
preventing development inconsistent with goals of preservation of
potential historic structures.
SECTION 2. Interim Zoning.
(a) No project shall be approved for any residentially
zoned property on 11th Street between Wilshire Boulevard and
Arizona Avenue and between 1107 through 1115 Arizona Avenue
inclusive.
(b) This Ordinance shall apply to any application for
planning, building, or other City approvals deemed complete on or
after February 26, 1991.
SECTION 3.
Duration.
This Ordinance shall be of no
further force and effect forty-five (45) days from its adoption,
unless prior to that date, after a public hearing, noticed
- 2 -
~
.
~
,
-::.- --=-~- -~-=--~~~..".~
... ~-r t -r -..."" -
~.r~.., - -..~~--~."'"-=<;--- ,'- .<C>~~<>-.-""",,"--' ;;<'?~~-
. - -. =~ . --~ '~-.-
t
I
,
pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code section 9131.5, the City
council, ~ majority vote, extends the interim ordinance.
l'
SECTION 4. Emergency. This Ordinance is declared to be an
urgency measure adopted pursuant to the provisions of Santa
Monica Municipal Code section 9120.6 and Santa Monica Charter
Section 615.
It is necessary for preserving the public peace,
health and safety, and the urgency for its adoption is set forth
in the findings above.
SECTION 5 .
Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal
Code or appendices thereto inconsistent wi th the provisions of
this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no
further, are hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary
to affect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 6. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause,
or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid
or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of any competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The Ci ty Council hereby
declares that it would have passed this Ordinance, and each and
every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
- 3 -
,-"'-' ."";. -~
.
.
declared invalid or unconstitutional without reqard to whether
any portion of the Ordinance would be subsequently declared
j
~
invalid or unconstitutional.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
,)....r~ ~ ~
ROBERT M. MYERS
city Attorney
- 4 -
;~.;?-"".:,- . f .
~
,
.
.
Adopted and approved this 9th day of April, 1991.
f
C)I ~,(,
P Mayor
1
I hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 1579(CCS)
was duly and regularly introduced at a meeting of the City
Council on the 9th day of April 1991; that the said Ordinance was
thereafter duly adopted at a meeting of the City Council on the
9th day of April 1991 by the following Council vote:
Ayes: Councilmembers: Genser, Holbrook, Katz, Olsen,
Vazquez, Zane, and Mayor Abdo
Noes: Councilmembers: None
Abstain: Councilmembera.: None
Absent: Councilmembers: None
ATTEST:
Lrf!~
...--- ...... city Clerk V
/'