REPORT TO HISTORICAL AND LANDMARKS COMMISSION
SUBJECT
Title
Public Hearing: Consideration of a Historical Preservation Agreement (Mills Act Contract) for 688 Monroe Street
Report
BACKGROUND
Property owners Mark and Genevieve Rogers are requesting a Historical Preservation Agreement (Mills Act Contract) for the property located at 688 Monroe Street. A requirement of the Mills Act is that the building must be a qualified structure, listed on either a local, State or National register. The property is currently listed on the City’s Historic Resource Inventory (HRI) for age and architectural integrity of the residential structure.
The existing residence is a 2,783 square foot, two-story Queen Anne Cottage with a partial basement that was constructed circa 1893 as a one-story home. The residence was expanded to include a first-floor addition and second story in 1975 consistent with the architectural style of the original home. At some point in time the basement was converted to habitable space as an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) without building permits. A garage was removed in 1975 to accommodate the construction and was not replaced. The property is a corner lot at the southwest corner of Monroe Street and Santa Clara Street in the Old Quad. The residence is oriented to front Monroe Street and maintains large front and street side yard landscaped setbacks behind a separated sidewalk and tree lined park strip along the street frontages.
The proposal includes approval of a Mills Act Contract and adoption of a 10-Year Restoration and Maintenance Plan associated with the Historical Preservation Agreement.
DISCUSSION
A Department of Recreation (DPR) 523A Form was prepared by Lorie Garcia of Beyond Buildings on September 13, 2020, assessing the historical significance of the property, and is attached to this report. The property was initially designated as a Historically Significant Property and placed on the City’s list of Architecturally or Historically Significant Properties in 1975. The evaluator finds the existing residential structure to be in good condition and an example of a sensitively remodeled example of Queen Anne Cottage architecture. The evaluator concluded that the property continues to retain sufficient integrity to qualify as an historic property since first designated as a Historically Significant Property based on National Register of Historic Places Criteria, the California Register of Historic Resources Criteria and the City’s Local Significance Criteria as articulated in the report.
The property owners have submitted a statement of justification and 10-Year Plan for restoration and maintenance of the property. The Plan includes repair and replacement of rotted wood elements on the exterior of the home, restoration of the side porch (on the north elevation) and first and second floor double hung windows, closing exterior openings to the basement crawl space, sealing and weatherproofing doors and windows, and improving site drainage against the foundation. The Plan also includes the legal conversion of the basement as an ADU with the requisite building permits or removal of the nonpermitted habitable living space.
Staff finds that the work proposed in the 10-Year Restoration and Maintenance Plan adheres to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. The proposed improvements support the preservation, protection and maintenance of a locally designated significant structure.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The Mills Act program is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) environmental review requirements per CEQA Section 15331, which exempts project limited to maintenance, repair, stabilization, rehabilitation, restoration, preservation, conservation or reconstruction of historical resources in a manner consistent with the Secretary of the Interior Standards.
PUBLIC CONTACT
The notice of public hearing for this item was posted at three locations within 300 feet of the project site and was mailed to property owners within 300 feet of the project site. No public comments have been received at the time of preparation of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Historical and Landmarks Commission find that the Mills Act Application and associated 10-Year Plan for restoration and maintenance accomplish the intent of preserving and maintaining the historical significance of the property; and therefore, recommend Council approval of a Mills Act Contract, and the adoption of a 10-Year Restoration and Maintenance Plan associated with the Historical Preservation Agreement.
Staff
Reviewed by Rebecca Bustos, Senior Planner
Approved by Gloria Sciara, Development Review Officer
ATTACHMENTS
1. Legal Property Description
2. Historic Survey (DPR 523A Form)
3. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation
4. Statement of Justification
5. 10-Year Restoration and Maintenance Plan
6. Draft Historic Property Preservation Agreement