174 Kinney Street Landmark Assessment Report

Home , B (Los Angeles Railway), Santa Monica Air Line

Santa Monica, CA 90405

Prepared for: City of Santa Monica Planning & Community Development Department 1685 Main Street, Room 212 Santa Monica, CA 90401

Prepared by: Architectural Resources Group, Inc. Architects, Planners & Conservators 8 Mills Place, Suite 300 Pasadena, CA 91105

March 31, 2015 174 Kinney Street, Santa Monica Landmark Assessment Report Page 1

1. Introduction

At the request of the City of Santa Monica’s Planning and Community Development Department, Architectural Resources Group, Inc. (ARG) has prepared this Landmark Assessment Report for 174 Kinney Street in Santa Monica, Los Angeles County.

The property at 174 Kinney Street contains a one‐story commercial building constructed between ca. 1915 and 1926. It is commercial vernacular in style, with Art Deco elements. It was originally owned by the Pacific Electric Railway and built onto the rear of the commercial building at 171‐177 Pier Avenue; it was historically known by the Pier Avenue addresses. ARG evaluated the property to determine whether it appears to satisfy one or more of the statutory criteria associated with City of Santa Monica Landmark eligibility, pursuant to Chapter 9.36 (Landmarks and Historic Districts Ordinance) of the Santa Monica Municipal Code.

Completion of this assessment involved a site visit and visual inspection of the building’s exterior on March 3, 2015; compilation and review of historical building permits obtained from the City’s Planning and Community Development Department; archival research conducted at the Santa Monica Public Library and various online repositories; development of applicable historic contexts and themes; and evaluation of eligibility under Santa Monica Landmark criteria. This report was prepared by ARG staff Katie E. Horak, Senior Associate and Architectural Historian and Preservation Planner, Mary Ringhoff, Associate and Architectural Historian and Preservation Planner, and Evanne St. Charles, Architectural Historian and Preservation Planner, all of whom meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Professional Qualification Standards for Architectural History and History.

In summary, ARG finds that 174 Kinney Street appears eligible under City of Santa Monica Landmark Criteria 9.36.100(a)(1) and 9.36.100(a)(6). The following sections provide a contextual basis for analysis and a detailed discussion of how this determination was made.

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2. Architectural Description

2.1 Site and Setting

The property at 174 Kinney Street is located in southwest Santa Monica, in a densely developed commercial and large‐scale multi‐family residential area one block from the waterfront. The building sits on the south side of Kinney Street, at the southeast corner of Kinney and Neilson Way. It is located within the Ocean Park neighborhood, roughly bounded by Lincoln Boulevard, Pico Boulevard, the waterfront, and Santa Monica City limits, and sits at the western edge of the Main Street commercial district. This district is composed of one and two‐story commercial and mixed‐use buildings, most of which date from the early 1910s to the mid‐1930s. While the topography of the area is relatively flat, Kinney Street slopes gently to the east toward Main Street in the block in which the subject property is located. The area adheres to Santa Monica’s skewed orthogonal street network and is divided into a series of rectilinear blocks that are roughly uniform in size and shape. The neighborhood’s commercial lots are consistent in size and shape east of Neilson Way, which was originally the Pacific Electric Railway’s right‐of‐way (known as Trolleyway); they are larger to the west toward the ocean, reflecting a long history of recreational occupations as well as the influence of the Ocean Park Redevelopment Project in the 1960s. This project demolished numerous early commercial and residential properties west of Trolleyway and resulted in the erection of large apartment and condominium complexes. Sited on a single rectangular parcel, the building at 174 Kinney Street is flush with the sidewalk and attached at its south end to a mixed‐use two‐story commercial building, constructed at the same time.

Site map. The subject property, 174 Kinney Street, is outlined in red. Aerial imagery courtesy maps.google.com.

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2.2 Building Exterior

The property at 174 Kinney Street is built in a commercial vernacular idiom, with Art Deco design elements at the primary façade. The one‐story rectangular building is constructed of reinforced brick and concrete with brick and stucco cladding and a low‐pitched, front‐gabled roof. The roof is sheathed with rolled asphalt and features three monitors at the roof ridge. The two northernmost monitors have hipped roofs and feature multi‐light wood skylights. The monitor toward the rear of the building has a flat roof and windows of unknown type and material. The roof is bookended by the adjacent two‐story building at the south and a stepped parapet at the north.

The building’s primary (north) façade fronts on Kinney Street and is more decorative than the other elevations; it appears as though this façade was added to an existing ca. 1915 building in 1926. The façade is symmetrical and divided into three bays, which are articulated by brick pilasters. The central bay is taller than the flanking bays, creating a vertical appearance. A recessed entry of partially glazed double wood doors, surrounded by wide wood sidelights and a transom, is located in the central bay. Large paired fixed wood windows are located in each outer bay. Numerous signs, planters, an awning and various decorative elements have been added to the façade. The entrance doors, sidelights, and transom in the central bay likely replaced a vehicular (automobile) entry when the building became a restaurant in the late 1970s.

The west elevation fronts on Neilson Way, a former Pacific Electric streetcar route. This elevation is fairly simple and flush with the sidewalk. The roof eave steps up approximately one foot toward the rear of the building to compensate for the slight change of topography; a rolled concrete cornice and pent roof clad with red clay tile finish the parapet. Paired multi‐light wood casement windows with thick concrete lintels are uniformly spaced on the façade. Near the center of the elevation are a single multi‐light wood casement window and a plain wood door. At the north end of the west façade, a concrete lintel (presumably topping what used to be a window opening) appears to have been truncated and an opening infilled with brick when the north façade was modified in the 1920s.

The east elevation faces a narrow patio now used for outdoor dining purposes. Much of the façade is not visible from the public right‐of‐way. The elevation has been re‐clad with stucco, and two small wood additions have been constructed near its south end.

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North and west elevations, view southeast. ARG, 3/3/15. Primary (north) elevation, view south. ARG, 3/3/15.

East elevation, view southwest. ARG, 3/3/15. West elevation and south end abutting building. ARG, 3/3/15.

Detail: rear of primary façade. ARG, 3/3/15. Detail: northwest portion of building. ARG, 3/3/15.

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3. Alterations and Chronology of Development

Upon review of archive building permits obtained from the City of Santa Monica’s Planning and Community Development Department, historic aerial photographs, Sanborn Fire Insurance Company maps, property data obtained from the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office, and historic Santa Monica business directories, ARG prepared the following chronology of development for 174 Kinney Street. This chronology provides a summary of the property’s development and alterations that have been made over time, as can be best ascertained from available primary and secondary sources.

Sanborn maps and newspaper accounts indicate that the northwest corner of Trolleyway and Pier Avenue was occupied by a one‐story confectionery with a detached rear office, both with the address 171 Pier Avenue, from 1902 until about 1915. A second one‐story building with two storefronts sat 40 feet to the east, within the same large parcel that was part of the Los Angeles Pacific/Pacific Electric Railway right‐of way. Around 1915, these buildings were removed and a new, multi‐part, mixed‐use building was constructed. As shown on the 1918 Sanborn map below, this larger building had a two‐ story volume with five storefronts fronting on Pier Avenue with the addresses 171‐179 Pier Avenue; the upper story contained apartments. The building also included a one‐story volume fronting on Trolleyway with the addresses 2937‐2945 Trolleyway, and a large rear one‐story volume containing the Auto Inn Garage and repair facility, with no separate address.

1918 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map showing 171‐179 Pier Avenue.

Santa Monica business directory research found a range of occupants at the Pier Avenue addresses over time, ranging from doctors and milliners to radio repair shops and grocers. In almost every year for which business directories are available, one of the occupants is related to auto repair or garage operations, suggesting the continuous use of the rear volume for auto‐related purposes. The first was the Reed and Layne Garage (1915‐1916), which became the Auto Inn Garage in 1917 and remained in operation under that name until around 1923, when it became the Ocean Park Garage. Between 1917 and 1920, business directories also list the Auto Inn Apartments in the building, presumably located in the upper story.

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In 1926, the Pacific Electric Railway Company acquired a permit to construct a new reinforced brick garage, to include space for stores and offices, at 171‐177 Pier Avenue.1 As noted in the permit, the new construction necessitated the demolition of part of the existing building; although it does not specify which part, it is likely to have been the one‐story volume fronting on Trolleyway. The new two‐story building was designed by Pacific Electric and built by Houghton and Anderson; it was designed to be 59 ft. 9 inches wide by 200 ft. long, maximizing the lot, with a concrete foundation, stucco façade on Pier, and composition roofing.

As shown on the 1950 Sanborn map below, the 1926 building was similar to the ca. 1915 building in that it comprised a two‐story volume fronting on Pier Avenue and a large one‐story garage volume at the rear. While it is possible that the 1926 building was entirely new construction, it is more likely that the new building incorporated major portions of the existing building. Comparison of the Sanborn maps, the permit information, and the building’s present‐day appearance suggests that in its 1926 construction, Pacific Electric removed the one‐story volume that fronted on Trolleyway; reconfigured the interiors of the Pier Avenue‐facing storefronts (reducing them from five to three); reconfigured the building exteriors so the two‐story volume was nearly flush with the one‐story garage; and added new facades to both the Pier Avenue and Kinney Street‐facing façades. Sanborn and historic city maps indicate that Kinney Street was not opened all the way across Trolleyway and through to Main Street until sometime between 1930 and 1950, likely concurrent with the abandonment of the Pacific Electric streetcar line in 1940.2

1950 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map showing 171‐175 Pier Avenue.

Aside from the new Kinney Street façade, the garage may have been largely unchanged from its original ca. 1915 configuration. Its size as depicted on the 1918 and 1950 Sanborn maps is approximately the same. As shown in the photograph below, it may have been slightly truncated at its northern (Kinney Street) end in 1926 to accommodate a new Art Deco façade; remnants of a concrete lintel matching those above the building’s other window openings and a brick‐filled opening attest to this possibility.

1 City of Santa Monica unnumbered building permit, 171‐177 Pier Ave., Ocean Park, 20 September 1926. 2 Pacific Blueprint and Map Co., Santa Monica City Map, ca. 1930. Santa Monica Public Library Historic Map Collection, http://digital.smpl.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/maps/id/33/rec/5; Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, California, 1918‐1950.

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Detail of NW corner, showing brick‐filled opening and concrete lintel remnant truncated by facade. ARG 3/3/15.

It is important to note that the 1926 façade addition created a new primary façade for the garage building, making it more recognizable as a stand‐alone building than as an attached volume of the Pier Avenue two‐story building. It should be noted that this report addresses only the Kinney Street garage building and does not include the two‐story building facing Pier Avenue in further discussions of alterations or landmark eligibility.

City business directories indicate that Pacific Electric Railway maintained an office in the Pier Avenue building between at least 1933 and 1953; its full function is unknown, although in its last years it was noted as a freight and passenger traffic department. The company had multiple properties in Santa Monica in addition to the subject building, from a car barn and yard elsewhere in Ocean Park to passenger depots.3 The Ocean Park car barn and yard was located in what is now the Venice neighborhood of Los Angeles, at the corner of Pacific Avenue and Sunset Avenue. The property is now the location of a Metro bus maintenance facility, and the car barn does not appear to be extant.

3 Jim Stubchaer’s website of Pacific Electric photos from 1947 to 1949 has several photos depicting the Ocean Park car barns and yard; see http://www.stubchaer.com/Pacific_Electric_Ry_Photos_1947_49_by_Jim_Stubchaer/PE29.htm. The Pacific Electric Railway Historical Society’s website also has undated photos of the Ocean Park car barns and yard, from the Jack Finn collection; see http://www.pacificelectric.org/wp‐content/uploads/2009/12/MP‐00323.jpg.

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While it is clear that Pacific Electric designed and owned the building at 171‐177 Pier Avenue/174 Kinney Street in 1926 and maintained a presence there for almost 30 years, the function of the garage itself is less clear. No primary sources could be found documenting the garage as a Pacific Electric car barn or transfer station, as the building is referred to by a number of secondary sources. City business directories indicate the continuous use of the garage by local automobile repair businesses including the Ocean Park Garage, Melsness (or Melsnes) Auto Repair, J.C. Williams, and Sobba Auto Service between 1928 and 1961. In general size and configuration, especially in terms of the Art Deco façade added by Pacific Electric in 1926, the building and its openings do not appear large or tall enough to enable use as a streetcar barn. Its central bay entrance appears to have been large enough to accommodate automobiles, but not the taller streetcars. The space may have served other Pacific Electric functions, from freight storage to ticket sales. It clearly also contained automobile repair operations, suggesting the owner (Pacific Electric or otherwise) rented out all or part of the space for this function. Given all of the above factors, particularly the fact that Pacific Electric maintained a large car barn and yard facility about half a mile away, it appears unlikely that the property at 174 Kinney Street was used as a Pacific Electric car barn.

No information has been found on occupants of the 174 Kinney Street property between 1961 and 1978. In 1978‐1979, the Famous Enterprise Fish Co. acquired the building and converted it into a restaurant. The permit does not specify alterations aside from the addition of signage, describing the work as “conversion and alteration of warehouse portion of existing structure to restaurant use.”4 Historic property and aerial photographs show that the monitors along the roof ridge were added at this time (see photos below). Other alterations include new primary doors, sidelights and transom at the main entry; glazing replacement in the fixed wood windows in the primary façade; the addition of oversize lanterns at the top of the parapet; installation of seismic anchor plates; wall recladding and the construction of several small wood additions at the east elevation; and the addition of exterior light fixtures and planters.

The table below summarizes the major construction and alteration events known to have occurred based on primary source documentation.

Date Description of Work Performed Owner on Record Owner unknown; multiple ca. 1915 Mixed‐use building constructed: garage in rear, stores and apartments in front occupants Construction of brick garage with stores and offices, incorporating parts of older 1926 Pacific Electric Railway Co. building 1978 Conversion of building from warehouse to restaurant; addition of 2 wall signs Famous Enterprise Fish Co.

4 City of Santa Monica building permit B50752, 174 Kinney Street, 5 April 1978.

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Garage roof with small skylights, 1964. Santa Monica Public Library Photograph Collection.

Garage roof with monitors at the roof ridge, 2015. ARG, 3/3/15.

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4. Historical Background

4.1 Early Development of Ocean Park

The roots of present‐day Santa Monica, which was originally inhabited by the Tongva people and was later incorporated into California’s network of expansive land grants during the state’s Mexican period, can be traced to the early 1870s. Rancher Colonel R.S. Baker and Nevada Senator John Percival Jones teamed to organize the Los Angeles and Independence Railroad, envisioning a seaside terminus at Santa Monica Bay that would become the economic heart of the Los Angeles area. They constructed a wharf and in 1875 had the townsite of Santa Monica platted and recorded; the original townsite was bounded by Colorado Street, Montana Street, the coastline, and 26th Street.5 The new town’s promoters touted Santa Monica as a beautiful and healthful destination, and lots sold rapidly during 1875. A small commercial district materialized, and some of Los Angeles’ most prominent citizens built shops and houses in the new community. Baker and Jones’ vision was never to be realized, however, as competition by rival railroad lines soon put the LA&I out of business; Southern Pacific acquired the line in 1877 and ran only light traffic on it until the 1890s.6 After reaching an estimated height of 900 people in 1876, by 1880 Santa Monica’s population had dropped to 400.7

Jones and other wealthy promoters did not give up on Santa Monica, and soon reinvented the town as a resort destination. The completion of a transcontinental rail line into Southern California and the subsequent fare war between the competing Southern Pacific and Santa Fe Railroad companies led to an 1880s real estate boom across the region, as people from all over the country took advantage of low fares and embarked for California’s warmer climes.8 Santa Monica was one of many communities to benefit, and so was a newly developing area just to the south which would become known as Ocean Park; originally part of the large Rancho La Ballona, this area was separated from Santa Monica by a large west‐trending gully and was largely owned by the Lucas family. In 1884, W.D. Vawter and his son E.J. purchased and subdivided 100 acres of the Ballona land into residential parcels, in canny anticipation of future growth.9

Santa Monica incorporated in late 1886 and embarked on a bid to become the premier resort city in Southern California. The city was heavily marketed as a tourist destination and gained national acclaim for its recreational culture, balmy climate, bathhouses, opulent hotels, and amusement piers. Between about 1890 and 1910, the Ballona area saw the erection of some of the most flamboyant attractions, oriented toward the beach and a series of piers. Most of its development was spearheaded by wealthy developer Abbott Kinney, who with his partner Francis C. Ryan purchased an oceanfront strip of the Vawter land in 1891. The partners’ Ocean Park Development Company divided much of the land into lots, added sewer lines and boardwalks, and rented and sold it out to beachgoers who wanted to erect cottages or tents. The balance was reserved for recreational and commercial use, with the goal of

5 City of Santa Monica General Plan, “Historic Preservation Element” (Santa Monica, California: PCR Services Corporation and Historic Resources Group, September 2002), 10. 6 Electric Railway Historical Association, Pacific Electric: Santa Monica Air Line (http://www.erha.org/pewal.htm), accessed 4 August 2014. 7 City of Santa Monica, “Historic Preservation Element,” 11. 8 George L. Henderson, California and the Fictions of Capital (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), 154. 9 Paula A. Scott, Santa Monica: A History on the Edge (Charleston: Arcadia Press, 2004), 64.

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174 Kinney Street, Santa Monica Landmark Assessment Report Page 11 making the new resort the greatest tourist destination in Southern California. Piers, a horse racing track, a golf course, and other amenities sprang up to serve the growing tourist population, and in 1895 the area was formally renamed Ocean Park. Despite its clear identity in its own right, Ocean Park never formally incorporated and was always considered the southernmost part of Santa Monica; its physical and social separation from the more well‐heeled northern part of town manifested in the slow extension of municipal services like water and electricity. In 1898, Ocean Park consolidated around the new Ocean Park Pier, and Pier Avenue emerged as the neighborhood’s main commercial thoroughfare. Kinney soon turned his focus to the southern part of the company’s holdings, which would become Venice.

The development of Ocean Park and Santa Monica in general carried on at a rapid pace from the 1880s onward, with Ocean Park seeing much of its development at the turn of the century. The city’s population grew steadily, reaching 1,580 people in 1890 and 3,057 in 1900.10 When the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks that ran along Second Street were removed in 1909, the street was renamed Main Street and Ocean Park’s commercial district grew from its Pier Avenue beginning to extend along Main.11 Additional commercial buildings arose along the intersecting streets and facing the shoreline. The small district continued to be surrounded by residential buildings, some of which evolved over the next few decades from small cottages to larger apartment buildings and hotels. Not all housing was for resort visitors; Ocean Park also housed numerous full‐time residents, many of whom worked for tourist‐ oriented establishments like hotels and restaurants. Religious institutions, schools, clubs, and other community services grew to serve the permanent population, and city services like street grading and sidewalk additions greatly improved the landscape. By 1906, Santa Monica had extended its eastern boundary to Cambridge Avenue (now Centinela Avenue); by 1910, it had extended its official city limits well south of Colorado, past Marine Street, including almost all of the Ocean Park neighborhood except for a small portion which became part of Venice.12

4.2 The Pacific Electric Railway and Ocean Park’s Commercial District

Ocean Park’s commercial development was greatly aided by the establishment of electric railway service. Beginning in 1896, the Pasadena Pacific Railway between Los Angeles and Santa Monica used the old Southern Pacific line to greatly increase accessibility to areas that had previously been impractical to subdivide and develop. This line later became the Los Angeles Pacific Railway, and in a 1911 reorganization, became part of the Southern Pacific‐owned Pacific Electric Railway. Within Santa Monica, local cars ran on Broadway, 3rd Street, Montana Avenue, and Lincoln Boulevard.13 The already‐ heavy influx of tourists grew even heavier. Pacific Electric’s renowned Airline route ran near‐constant service, carrying thousands of passengers a day in a crowded stream toward Santa Monica’s beaches and amusements.

10 Les Storrs, Santa Monica: Portrait of a City (Santa Monica: Santa Monica Bank, 1974), 17. 11 M. Agelasto and P. Gleye, DPR 523 Form for the Main Street Commercial Historic District (prepared by the City of Santa Monica, 1983). 12 Thomas E. James (W.L. Young, Chief Draftsman), Official Map of the City of Santa Monica, April 1906 (Santa Monica, California: City Engineer’s Office, 1906), accessed online at http://digital.smpl.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/maps/id/38/rec/1, 8 August 2014; W.W. Phelps, Map of Santa Monica and Vicinity, Los Angeles County, Cal, 1910 (Santa Monica, California: City Engineer’s Office, 1910), accessed online at http://digital.smpl.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/maps/id/19/rec/2, 6 August 2014. 13 Storrs, Santa Monica, 20.

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An electric streetcar line first reached the main commercial and recreational district of Ocean Park in 1906, when the Los Angeles Pacific constructed its Ocean Park station at the corner of Hill Street and ran lines north and south along its right‐of‐way from there.14 Known as Trolleyway, the streetcar right‐of‐ way was a dominant feature of Ocean Park and was lined with commercial buildings as well as residences. As a result, Ocean Park became the new heart of tourism, with ever‐grander bathhouses, piers, amusement parks, and other attractions.

By the 1920s, Ocean Park’s commercial district was fully developed and quite dense. As visible in the existing buildings along Main Street and its short intersecting avenues today, the district was and is characterized by one‐ and two‐story commercial buildings flush with the sidewalk and directly abutting one another. They are built in a range of styles, mostly commercial vernacular with notable examples of Spanish Colonial Revival, Art Deco, and Streamline Moderne, and many are constructed of brick (both reinforced and unreinforced) faced with stucco. The buildings contained a wide range of commercial operations, and many featured upper‐story residential units or offices. Most were constructed between the early 1910s and the mid‐1930s, with a few earlier and later examples.

In addition to its Hill Street depot, Pacific Electric’s Ocean Park facilities soon came to include a number of maintenance buildings like repair shops and car barns. Its main car barn and yard was on Trolleyway (later Pacific Avenue) at Sunset Avenue in what is now Venice. The railway built or highly modified an existing building at 171‐177 Pier Avenue in 1926; this property included the brick garage at what is now 174 Kinney Street (the subject building). The company maintained offices in the building between at least 1933 and 1953, while the rest of the Pier Avenue frontage contained stores and offices with apartments on the second floor. As previously discussed, it is not clear whether Pacific Electric used the garage facility itself.

After years of heavy use, the Pacific Electric line in Ocean Park began losing popularity as the automobile became the dominant mode of transportation in Southern California, especially by tourists coming to visit Santa Monica. Heavy competition by local bus companies offering transportation to and from Santa Monica also played a major role, as did the general decline of tourism in the area due to the Great Depression. Streetcar service was reduced in 1933, and in 1940 the line was abandoned entirely.15 Trolleyway was converted into an automobile thoroughfare, and Pacific Electric built a bus service station at the corner of Ashland Avenue and Trolleyway to facilitate its motorcoach service. By 1953, Pacific Electric had left the building at 171‐177 Pier Avenue/174 Kinney Street.

4.3 Later Development of the Ocean Park Commercial District

Ocean Park saw a slow, long decline starting during the Great Depression and continuing through the post‐World War II period, as its tourist attractions ceased drawing large numbers of visitors. Its commercial and residential districts fell into some disrepair as a result. In the 1950s, Santa Monica began a number of substantial civic improvements to better serve its growing population (and to present a more modern façade to the world). Among the most visible include the destructive urban renewal projects that demolished old bungalows and beach cottages in Ocean Park, most of which had

14 Los Angeles Herald, “New Line Planned for Two Lively Districts,” 3 February 1906. 15 Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California, Santa Monica via Sawtelle Line (http://www.erha.org/pewsms.htm, accessed 2 March 2015).

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174 Kinney Street, Santa Monica Landmark Assessment Report Page 13 been occupied by an ethnically diverse, lower‐income community. The loss of affordable housing was a blow to local residents. The commercial district was also “revitalized,” first by the 1958 development of the Pacific Ocean Park amusement park, a nautically themed attraction meant to compete with Disneyland. The park was not as successful as hoped, and closed down in 1967. The other major force in the commercial district was the Ocean Park Redevelopment Project, which starting in 1964 led to the razing of a huge swath of Ocean Park’s historic buildings west of Trolleyway (which was widened and renamed Neilson Way sometime after 1950) in order to create large apartment and condominium complexes and a golf course. Redevelopment stalled in 1972 with the passage of Proposition 20, which established the California Coastal Commission and limited construction along the coast.16

Many of the commercial buildings that survived urban renewal efforts were adapted for new uses from the 1970s into the present. The repurposing of the garage building at 174 Kinney Street into a seafood restaurant represents of this type of adaptive reuse in the Ocean Park commercial district.

4.4 Art Deco Architecture

The property at 174 Kinney Street reflects a commercial vernacular idiom with distinctive Art Deco design elements. The Art Deco style grew out of the Paris L’Exposition des Artes Décoratifs et Industriels Moderne of 1925, the later works of American architect Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue, and Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen’s second place design for the Chicago Tribune building competition in 1922. Art Deco architecture reflects the modernity of industry and science of the period with influences such as the Bauhaus in Europe.17 In addition to modern European influences, the style was shaped by the designs of traditional and ancient cultures, including Japanese, Egyptian, Mesoamerican and African configurations.

The Art Deco style was most often used in the construction of commercial buildings from the late 1920s to the mid‐1930s in Southern California; when adapted to residential buildings, examples were typically multi‐family apartment houses. In conjunction with the design of buildings, the Art Deco style was used to design furniture, flatware, textiles and jewelry. Like the rest of Southern California, Santa Monica experienced a massive building boom in the 1920s and has numerous examples of Art Deco commercial architecture. Notable examples include the Wilshire Theater (1930), the Bay Cities Guaranty Building (1929), the Central Tower Building (1929) and 301‐3215 Wilshire Boulevard (1930). All of these examples are designated City Landmarks.

Buildings designed in the Art Deco style are characterized by their emphasis on verticality through the use of towers, fluted piers, rectangular pilasters and various other vertical projections above the roofline. Façades are often symmetrical. They typically retain smooth wall surfaces, clad with stucco, glazed terra cotta and/or tile. Angular geometric patterns such as chevrons and zigzags are common, as are Egyptian, Japanese, Mesoamerican and African‐inspired motifs.

16 Ocean Park, California, Ocean Park Redevelopment Project (https://oceanpark.wordpress.com/top/ocean‐park‐ redevelopment‐project/, accessed 2 March 2015). 17 ICF Jones & Stokes, Santa Monica Citywide Historic Resources Inventory Update Final Report (prepared for the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, 2010).

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5. Regulations and Criteria for Evaluation

5.1 City of Santa Monica Landmarks and Historic Districts Ordinance

Historic preservation in Santa Monica is governed by Chapter 9.36 (Landmarks and Historic Districts Ordinance) of the Santa Monica Municipal Code. The Ordinance was adopted by the Santa Monica City Council on March 24, 1976 and was twice amended, first in 1987 and again in 1991.18 Among the primary objectives achieved by the Ordinance was the creation of a local designation program for buildings, structures, sites, objects, districts, and landscapes in the City that are of historical significance.

With regard to individually significant properties, the Ordinance distinguishes between two tiers of designation: Landmarks and Structures of Merit. Landmarks, outlined in §9.36.100, are considered to exhibit “the highest level of individual historical or architectural significance”; Santa Monica’s designated landmarks include well‐known and highly significant properties like the Rapp Saloon, Santa Monica City Hall, and the John Byers Adobe. Structures of Merit, outlined in §9.36.080, possess a degree of individual significance that is more limited in scope.19 Protections against demolition and alterations are commensurate with the tier of individual designation assigned to a particular resource.

In addition to individual Landmarks and Structures of Merit, the Ordinance establishes statutory criteria and procedures for the designation of Historic Districts, defined in §9.36.030 as a “geographic area or noncontiguous grouping of thematically related properties” that collectively contribute to the historic character of an area within the City.

Per §9.36.100(a) of the Ordinance, a property merits consideration as a Landmark if it satisfies one or more of the following six statutory criteria:

(1) It exemplifies, symbolizes, or manifests elements of the cultural, social, economic, political, or architectural history of the City; (2) It has aesthetic or artistic interest or value, or other noteworthy interest or value; (3) It is identified with historic personages or with important events in local, state, or national history; (4) It embodies distinguishing architectural characteristics valuable to a study of a period, style, method of construction, or the use of indigenous materials or craftsmanship, or is a unique or rare example of an architectural design, detail, or historical type valuable to such a study; (5) It is a significant or a representative example of the work or product of a notable builder, designer, or architect; (6) It has a unique location, a singular physical characteristic, or is an established and familiar visual feature of a neighborhood, community, or the City.

18 City of Santa Monica General Plan, “Historic Preservation Element,” prepared by PCR Services Corporation and Historic Resources Group (September 2002), 1‐2. 19 City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, “Historic Preservation in Santa Monica,” accessed 8 August 2014

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6. Evaluation of Significance

6.1 Previous Evaluations

The property at 174 Kinney Street (also 171‐177 Pier Avenue) has been previously evaluated twice as part of the City’s ongoing historic resource survey efforts. In 1983, it was assigned a status code of 3 (appears eligible for National Register of California Register through survey evaluation) and was also recommended to be a contributor to a potential Main Street Commercial Historic District.20 In 2007, this status code was updated to 5D3 (appears to be a contributor to a district that appears eligible for local listing or designation through survey evaluation). In its update of the City’s historic resource inventory, ICF Jones & Stokes recommended the property to be a contributor to a potential Main Street Commercial Historic District.21

6.2 Evaluation of Local Significance

In summary, the property at 174 Kinney Street, a commercial building, appears eligible for local listing as a Landmark. This determination was made by evaluating the property against each of the criteria as follows:

9.36.100(a)(1). It exemplifies, symbolizes, or manifests elements of the cultural, social, economic, political, or architectural history of the City.

The property at 174 Kinney Street is associated with the early commercial development of Santa Monica, in particular the most intense period of development of the Ocean Park neighborhood during the 1910s and 1920s. It is a representative, largely intact example of an automobile repair garage that serviced the cars of locals and visitors at a time when automobiles came to eclipse public transportation. The building was owned by the Pacific Electric Railway Company and sited along its right‐of‐way, Trolleyway (now Neilson Way); while it is not clear how or whether Pacific Electric used the facility for streetcar‐related functions, the historical association with the company is unquestionable. In addition, the subject building is a rare surviving example of a 1910s‐1920s building on Neilson Way in this part of Ocean Park. As it exemplifies elements of the cultural, social, economic, and architectural history of Santa Monica, the property appears to satisfy this criterion as an individual property.

20 Johnson Heumann Research Assocates, DPR 523 form for 174 Kinney Street (prepared for the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, 1983). 21 P. Moruzzi, M. Potter, and K. Lain, State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation DPR 523 Form for 177 Pier Avenue (prepared by ICF International for the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, 2007); City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, “Historic Resources Inventory,” http://www.smgov.net/Departments/PCD/Historic‐Resources‐Inventory/; ICF Jones & Stokes, Santa Monica Citywide Historic Resources Inventory Update Final Report (prepared for the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, 2010).

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9.36.100(a)(2). It has aesthetic or artistic interest or value, or other noteworthy interest or value.

The subject property is a largely intact example of a commercial vernacular building with Art Deco elements. However, as one of many examples of this style in Santa Monica, and as a comparably modest example which has experienced some alterations to its original appearance, its aesthetic or artistic value is not highly significant, unusual, or noteworthy; it does not appear to satisfy this criterion.

9.36.100(a)(3). It is identified with historic personages or with important events in local, state, or national history.

No evidence was found that the property at 174 Kinney Street is associated with historic personages or with important events in local, state, or national history. It does not appear to satisfy this criterion.

9.36.100(a)(4). It embodies distinguishing architectural characteristics valuable to a study of a period, style, method of construction, or the use of indigenous materials or craftsmanship, or is a unique or rare example of an architectural design, detail, or historical type valuable to such a study.

While the subject property exhibits elements of the Art Deco architectural style, its overall effect is more vernacular than exemplary, and it does not embody distinguishing architectural characteristics. It is relatively modest in scale and ornamentation compared to many other examples in Santa Monica, and does not possess any unusual or outstanding characteristics valuable to the study of a period, style, method of construction, or use of indigenous materials or craftsmanship. The building is not a unique or rare example of an architectural design, detail, or historical type and is not distinguished among other examples of the style in the larger body of commercial architecture in the Ocean Park neighborhood or the City as a whole. It does not appear to satisfy this criterion.

9.36.100(a)(5). It is a significant or a representative example of the work or product of a notable builder, designer, or architect.

The property at 174 Kinney Street was designed by in‐house designers at Pacific Electric Railway and was built by Houghton and Anderson, a Los Angeles contracting firm. Houghton and Anderson worked on a variety of project types and do not appear to have been notable builders. The subject property was not designed or built by a notable builder, designer, or architect, and does not appear to satisfy this criterion.

9.36.100(a)(6). It has a unique location, a singular physical characteristic, or is an established and familiar visual feature of a neighborhood, community, or the City.

The subject property is flush with the east side of Neilson Way (Trolleyway); this area was part of the Pacific Electric right‐of‐way and was mostly undeveloped during the historic period. Today most of the adjacent blocks to the north and south of 174 Kinney Street contain parking lots and modern infill. For these reasons, the property does occupy an unusual location, though not unique as traditionally defined (one of a kind). It has become an established and familiar visual feature of Ocean Park’s Main Street commercial district and is a prominent building. The property appears to satisfy this criterion.

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7. Conclusion

Based on documentary research, site analysis, the development of historic contexts, and an evaluation against local eligibility criteria, ARG finds that the commercial property at 174 Kinney Street appears eligible under City of Santa Monica Landmark Criteria 9.36.100(a)(1) and 9.36.100(a)(6).

8. Bibliography

Books, Periodicals, and Other Published Materials:

Agelasto, M. and P. Gleye. State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation DPR 523 Form for Main Street (including continuation sheets for 177 Pier Avenue and 174 Kinney Street). Prepared for the City of Santa Monica, 1983.

City of Santa Monica General Plan, “Historic Preservation Element,” prepared by PCR Services Corporation and Historic Resources Group (September 2002), 12‐13.

Henderson, George L. California and the Fictions of Capital. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

ICF Jones & Stokes. Santa Monica Citywide Historic Resources Inventory Update Final Report. Prepared by ICF Jones & Stokes for the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, 2010.

Ingersoll, Luther A. Ingersoll’s Century History, Santa Monica Bay Cities. Los Angeles: Luther A. Ingersoll, 1908.

Johnson Heumann Research Associates. Santa Monica Historical Resources Inventory 1985‐1986 Final Report. Prepared for the City of Santa Monica, 1986.

McAlester, Virginia, and Lee McAlester. A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1984.

Moruzzi, P., M. Potter, and K. Lain. State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation DPR 523 Form (continuation sheet) for 177 Pier Avenue. Prepared by ICF International for the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department, 2007.

Santa Monica City Directories (various), accessed at the Santa Monica Public Library.

Scott, Paula. Santa Monica: A History on the Edge. San Francisco: Arcadia Publishing, 2004.

Upton, Dell, and John Michael Vlach. Common Places: Readings in American Vernacular Architecture. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1986.

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Wenzel, Karen M. The Impact of Historic Preservation on Land Use Planning in Ocean Park, Santa Monica, California. Master’s thesis, California State University, Northridge, 1994.

Other Sources:

City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department. “Historic Preservation in Santa Monica.” Accessed online at http://www.smgov.net/departments/PCD/Programs/Historic‐ Preservation/.

City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department. “Historic Resources Inventory.” Accessed online at http://www.smgov.net/Departments/PCD/Historic‐Resources‐ Inventory/.

City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development Department. Building and alteration permits for 171‐177 Pier Avenue/174 Kinney Street.

Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Accessed online at http://www.erha.org/index.html.

Historic Aerial Images, 1947‐2005. Accessed online at http://www.historicaerials.com.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Works. Tract Maps. Accessed online at http://dpw.lacounty.gov/smpm/landrecords/.

Los Angeles Public Library. Historical Los Angeles Times. Accessed online at http://www.lapl.org.

Sanborn Fire Insurance Map Company. Fire Insurance Maps, Santa Monica, California, 1909‐1950.

Santa Monica Public Library. Historical Maps of Santa Monica. Accessed online at http://digital.smpl.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/maps.

Santa Monica Public Library. Santa Monica Image Archive. Accessed online at http://digital.smpl.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/smarchive.

Santa Monica Public Library. Santa Monica Newspaper Index. Accessed online at http://digital.smpl.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/smfile.

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Attachments:

Building Permits

Architectural Resources Group, Inc. Architects, Planners, & Conservators