PLANNING COMMISSION NEW BUSINESS SEPTEMBER 1, 2016 SUBJECT: INITIATED BY: CITYWIDE COMMERCIAL HISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEY COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT (David DeGrazia, Planning Manager, CHPP) (Rachel Dimond, AICP, Senior Planner/HPC Staff Liaison) (Antonio Castillo, Associate Planner) STATEMENT ON THE SUBJECT The Planning Commission will receive the final draft Commercial Historic Resources Survey. City staff and the GPA Consulting team will present the final draft survey and provide the Planning Commission with an overview of the historic context statement and a list of designated and potential cultural resources for all commercial and nonresidential buildings throughout the City. Additionally, staff will introduce the new historic preservation website. RECOMMENDATION No formal action is required by the Planning Commission on the final draft survey. The review of the final draft survey is the purview of the Historic Preservation Commission. The survey is presented to the Planning Commission for information only. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The City's consulting firm of GPA Consulting (GPA) prepared a historic resources survey of commercial and non-residential properties in the City of West Hollywood. The project was completed between November 2015 and August 2016. In total, GPA surveyed 763 properties throughout the City constructed through 1975 at the reconnaissance level. A total of 87 individual properties and one district warranted an intensive level evaluation based upon the themes outlined in the historic context statement. Further, 57 of the 87 properties and one district of ten contributing properties appear eligible for landmark designation. Of these 57 individual properties and one district, 15 individual properties and one district were identified as potentially eligible under one or more of the national, state, and 1ocal designation programs. Forty-two individual properties were identified as potentially eligible under the local designation program only. The remaining 696 properties were found ineligible for national, state, and local designatiqn programs for either lack of significance or integrity. Page 1 of5 ITEM 11.A.
BACKGROUND Project History The following is a history timeline for the Commercial Historic Resources Survey: September 8, 2014: The City Council directed staff to prepare a historic context statement and update the Historic Resources Survey of commercial properties. October 19, 2015: The City Council approved an agreement for services with GPA Consulting to prepare a historic context statement and citywide survey update of commercial buildings. November 23, 2015: The HPC reviewed the project schedule and survey methodology and appointed three Historic Preservation Commissioners to the HPC Commercial Survey Subcommittee. December 14, 2015: The HPC Subcommittee convened to discuss a draft outline for the historic context statement, bibliography, and the community engagement strategy for the commercial survey. January 6, 2016: The HPC Subcommittee reviewed an updated draft outline for the historic context statement, bibliography, community engagement strategy and discussed the format for the community kick-off meeting. January 11, 2016: A community kick-off meeting introduced the project team and the project scope to the community. April 13, 2016: The HPC Subcommittee met for the last time to review an updated outline for the historic context statement, bibliography, and draft list of potential cultural resources. June 27, 2016: The HPC reviewed the draft commercial survey and draft list of potential cultural resources. August 22, 2016: The HPC reviewed the final draft commercial survey, updated list of potential cultural resources, and new historic preservation website and searchable database of surveyed properties. Commercial Historic Resources Survey The final draft Commercial Historic Resources Survey is the culmination of the survey effort that focused on an intensive citywide historic resources evaluation of commercial and non-residential structures constructed through 1975. The final draft survey is a synthesis of field work, historical research, and input from the Historic Preservation Commercial Survey Subcommittee, Historic Preservation Commission, and public over Page 2 of 5
the past 11 months, including seven public meetings. The survey effort consisted of three main components, including: 1) a historic context statement of commercial buildings; 2) a reconnaissance level survey; and 3) an intensive level evaluation. Though the survey addressed properties constructed through 1975, the historic context statement extended to 1984, the year West Hollywood was incorporated as a city. At the outset of the project, the date 1984 appeared to be a more natural conclusion to the context statement than 1975 and allowed for the inclusion of important historical trends that occurred in the area during the late 1970s and early 1980s. The historic context statement includes four periods of significance, including: Sherman and Adjacent County Lands 1895-1925 West Hollywood 1926 - World War II Postwar West Hollywood 1946-1965 Modern West Hollywood 1966-1984 Building on the two previous historic resources surveys, including a citywide historic survey completed in 1987 and a survey of multi-family residential buildings completed in 2008, the commercial survey updates the inventory of commercial and non-residential buildings. The survey effort uses current best practices in the field and makes information for all cultural resources in the city more accessible to the public. A total of 763 commercial and non-residential properties were surveyed in the reconnaissance phase of the survey. Of these 763 properties, a total of 87 properties warranted an intensive level evaluation based upon their potential to convey significance. These properties were researched and evaluated using criteria for designation under the national, state, and local landmark programs and documented using State of California Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) forms. Of the 87 properties evaluated, 57 appear to be eligible for designation under national, state, and local landmark programs. They represent a broad range of periods and themes in West Hollywood history as well as a variety of architectural styles and building types. These properties and recommended status codes are listed in Table II (Potential Individual Historic Resources) and DRP 523 A and B forms attached in Appendix II of the final draft Commercial Historic Resources Survey (EXHIBIT A). The reconnaissance survey identified 27 properties that are already designated cultural resources under national, state, and/or local programs, including 20 properties at the local level and listed in the West Hollywood Register. The project team photographed these properties and took notes on their physical characteristics to determine if they had been negatively altered since they were designated. Several of the designated cultural resources as well as other properties surveyed were originally constructed as residential buildings that have since been converted to commercial uses. Nevertheless, these properties were included in the survey. The project team also identified and photographed properties that warranted further research and investigation. Some of these properties were included in the City's initial 1987 survey, while others were not. Four of the properties from the 1987 survey identified as potential historic resources have been altered in the intervening years and were given a status code of 6Z (found Page 3of5
ineligible for National Register, California Register or local designation through survey evaluation) under this current commercial survey. A total of ten properties within Sunset Plaza located within the 8600-8700 block of Sunset Boulevard was the only potential district identified as eligible for designation under the national, state, and local landmark programs. Sunset Plaza was likewise identified in the 1987 survey; however, one contributing building was demolished in the intervening years and replaced with a new building. The proposed district boundaries correspond with the historic boundaries of Sunset Plaza, and include one new contributing building and one new non-contributing building. The addresses within the proposed district boundaries are listed in Table IV of the final draft Commercial Historic Resources Survey (EXHIBIT A). Properties Identified as Having Potential for Designation The final survey will provide information needed to 1) make informed planning decisions, 2) prioritize preservation planning goals and objectives, 3) develop and implement land use policies, 4) perform environmental reviews pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act, and 5) educate the public about the built environment as a tangible reminder of the community's history. It will not, however, result in the designation of any properties. Designation of cultural resources is a separate process outlined in Chapter 19.58 of the West Hollywood Municipal Code. Properties identified as having potential for future designation as a cultural resource are subject to a certificate of appropriateness (COA) pursuant to the provisions in the Chapter 19.58 (Cultural Heritage Preservation) in the WHMC. A COA is intended to protect structures from any alterations, demolition, or removal which would have an adverse effect on its significant architectural or cultural significance and integrity. Expedited Project Review While the commercial survey was in progress, the City's consultant assisted City Staff in reviewing applications for major alterations or demolitions to commercial properties constructed through 1975. The purpose of these reviews was to ensure the integrity of properties that may qualify as historic resources was not diminished prior the completion of the survey. Between the start of the survey process in October 2015 to present, a total of six application reviews were completed, none of which included a request for demolition. In all cases, the City's consultant surveyed the properties to determine whether the buildings were potential cultural resources. Historic Preservation Website In addition to the Commercial Historic Resources Survey, a new user-friendly auxiliary website has been completed. The mobile-friendly website is a comprehensive source for all historic preservation information in West Hollywood, including a searchable database of all surveyed properties and designated cultural resources using RuskinARC, a cloud-based system, making the information about the designated and surveyed properties available to the public. Additionally, the new website provides easy access to the Cultural Heritage Preservation Ordinance, Historic Preservation Chapter Page 4 of 5
of the General Plan, Historic Context Statement, relevant applications and forms for cultural resources, and answers to frequently asked questions about the City's historic preservation process and programs. The new website will be available this Fall at www.wehopreservation.org. NEXT STEP The final draft of the Commercial Historic Resources Survey will be presented to the City Council on September 19, 2016, as an information item. EXHIBIT A. Final Draft Commercial Historic Resources Survey Page 5 of 5
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