By Shobha Rao
 Jacqueline Ramseyer/special to the TOWN CRIER |
Proponents wonder: Are we moving away from preservation of historic homes?
With all the new homes going up in Los Altos Hills, what exactly is coming down? The question of the preservation and designation of historical sites is one that has been a contentious issue in Palo Alto recently and has been confronted repeatedly within Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.
For example, in May 1998, an Los Altos English-style cottage dating back to 1924 was demolished to make way for three 35-foot high houses. The original cottage, located on the corner of Spalding Avenue and Winding Way in the unincorporated country club neighborhood, was built by two sisters using plans from their father’s home in England.
The cottage was purchased in 1997 by David Wilson, a Saratoga developer, and he submitted plans to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors to tear down the cottage, subdivide the lot and build three homes. Although the Santa Clara County Historical Heritage Commission made a unanimous recommendation to save the cottage and add it to the county’s historic inventory; the Board of Supervisors decided for the developer, and the cottage was demolished.
Another historic home, the Willard M. Griffin House, built in 1901 and located on the Foothill College campus in Los Altos Hills, is also the source of ongoing controversy. In 1996, the Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees considered alternatives for the building, including moving it to another site. Nancy Mason, chairwoman of the Committee to Save Griffin House, suggested that the home be used instead for college, community and rental use, combined with an art center. Each alternative was deemed infeasible due to cost, which ran into the millions, and for now, the house remains unused and idle.
According to Dan Alexander, a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Altos Hills Historical Society, local preservation efforts need more support from the town. He said that “it’s sad that no city councilmember has any interest in historical buildings, except Elayne (Dauber).” Alexander also urged that “at least some support from the town” would help in documenting and preserving its rich history.
It seems the town started with the best of intentions. In the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code, the city council was granted the power to appoint a town historian, along with recognizing the Los Altos Hills Historical Society as a private, volunteer committee. Both the historian and the historical society were allowed to consult and make recommendations to the city council on various matters.
Los Altos Hills also had a separate site next to Town Hall, the Heritage House, which was to serve as the office space and library for the Town Historian, Rosemary Meyerott. The original furnishings and character of the home were to be preserved as an example of early 20th century workmanship. But due to lack of space and resources, Meyerott’s office was converted into the police department for Los Altos Hills and the living room and dining room of the home are now being utilized as offices for the Public Works Department. Most of the original furnishing have been relegated to the attic of the home and only the small library, containing books written by Los Altos Hills residents or about the town, has been retained.
The Los Altos Historical Society, on the other hand, has maintained the History House, located on San Antonio Road, since 1977. The History House is a fully furnished rendition of a typical orchardist’s home during the 1930s, complete with a small apricot orchard surrounding the home. The home is open to visitors three days a week.
The Los Altos Historical Society also broke ground in 1998 for a new building to house a history museum. The museum is located next to the History House and is set to open in the fall of this year. Beth Hansen, director of the Los Altos Historical Society, said the new museum will house “temporary exhibits on the ground floor and a permanent exhibit on the second floor.” The permanent exhibit, according to Hansen, will chronicle “the whole history of Los Altos … from land formation to the present.” The basement of the building will be used as office space for the Historical Society and, as Hansen said, “will make our archives more accessible to museum visitors.”
The cost for construction of the new museum building, due to open in the fall, was funded entirely through private contributions, and, like the History Museum, will be deeded to the city of Los Altos upon completion.
Though Los Altos has made progress in its preservation efforts, one community that has recently struggled with the question of historical preservation and how to go about it, is Palo Alto. This past March, residents of Palo Alto rejected a historical preservation ordinance. The ordinance, Measure G, would have protected approximately 700 homes in the Palo Alto area that were built before 1950. Measure G would have made it virtually impossible to tear down these homes. In addition, large projects, such as adding a second story, altering the side facing the street, or changing 20 percent or more of an exterior wall, would not have been allowed if city officials decided that the work would endanger the historical integrity of the house.
Though the city council unanimously approved the ordinance, the residents of Palo Alto voted against Measure G by a narrow margin, less than 1,000 votes. The fight over the ordinance was waged with a surprising amount of acrimony. Both sides of the issue accused one another of spreading false and inflammatory information. In addition, record amounts were spent on the campaign, with the “No on G” side spending more than $70,000, including the cost of hiring a San Francisco political consulting firm and a Missouri telemarketing company that called 6,000 residents the weekend before the election.
Some residents claim that Los Altos Hills is not facing the same dilemma as Palo Alto and that the historic homes in the area have already been adequately preserved. One common example is Morgan Manor, a Tudor-style house built in 1914 by Percy Morgan. The house is replete with beaded glass window panes, fireplaces imported from European castles and a 16th century painting that adorns the ceiling of the 60-by-30-foot ballroom. The house also has four stone entranceway pieces dating from 1660 to 1705, from the home of Irish dramatist and politician, Brinsley Sheridan. The house, purchased last year by Kelly Porter, is undergoing a massive restoration.
“We see ourselves as stewards of the house,” Porter said, “preserving what’s been and preparing for what’s to come.”
There are a few homes in Los Altos Hills that have been lovingly restored, but according to Alexander, history is being lost at a rapid rate and “suburbia is encroaching.” He predicts that one day, Los Altos Hills will have “curbs and gutters and street lights,” since it cannot always stay a rural enclave. For now, Alexander said that he would like to see “more residents involved and interested in the history of the town.”
Alexander himself became interested in the Historical Society through his late wife, Peggy. He became the driver for the society, as they toured historic homes and sites in the area. Although the society no longer takes tours, they still hold three annual meetings. Two of the meetings feature talks given by scholars of history, while the third is their annual Christmas party. These days, Alexander said, “all the men (in the society) are too old to be active.” When asked what new members could possibly bring to the Historical Society, Alexander said, “millions of new ideas of what to do and the energy to go out and do them.”
Information about the Los Altos Hills Historical Society can be obtained by calling Dan Alexander at 948-8470 or the membership chairwoman, Linda Swan at 948-1238.
The following is a list of historical sites in the area:
Ohlone Indian Village Site (1700s) - O’Keefe Lane and El Monte Avenue
Indian Spring (1700s) - Magdalena Avenue
Indian Meditation Point (1700s) - La Cresta Avenue
Juan Prado Mesa Adobe Site (1840’s) - Summerhill & El Monte Avenue
Juana Briones Adobe (1840s) - Old Trace Road
M. L. Koenig Residence (1800’s) - Old Altos Road
Indian Villa (1860s) - Moody Road
Old Trace Road (1860’s) - Fremont Road, near Arastradero Road
Moody Road (1888)
Gardner Bullis Residence (1870s) - Manuela Avenue
Frenchman’s Tower (1874) - Old Page Mill Road
Thomas Wright Home (1880s) - Magdalena Avenue
Captain Merx Home (1895) - Dori Lane and Robleda Avenue
William P. Huth Residence (1900s) - Lennox Way and Burke Avenue
Francis Avidano Home (1900s) - Robleda Avenue
W. K. H. Panofsky Home (1900s) - Chapin Road
Willard M. Griffin Home (1901) - 12345 El Monte Avenue
One-room Purissima School (1902) - Robleda and Duval Way
Henry F. Dana Home - South El Monte
Cosmo George Morgan “Little Gables” (1910) - Stonebrook Avenue
Percy Morgan Mansion (1914) - Stonebrook Avenue
Thomas Shumate Residence (1915) - Viscaino Drive
Horner-Hill Barn and Silo (1915) - Moody Road
Arthur E. Fowle Home (1925) - Esperanza Drive
Dr. C. C. Crane Residence (1926) - Fremont Road
Adobe Creek Lodge (1935) - Moody Road
C. Earl Dawson Residence (1948) - Magdalena Avenue
Sydney W. Treat Home (1948) - Robleda Avenue
Los Altos Hills Town Hall (1956) - 26379 Fremont Road
Corbetta “Parasol” Home (1960) - Corbetta Lane
