Appendix D Cultural Report
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APPENDIX D CULTURAL REPORT CALIFORNIA HISTORICAL RESOURCES INFORMATION SYSTEM REPORT HISTORICAL RESOURCE EVALUATION HISTORICAL RESOURCE EVALUATION 2100 STONE VALLEY ROAD ALAMO, CALIFORNIA TIM KELLEY CONSULTING HISTORICAL RESOURCES 2912 DIAMOND STREET #330 SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131 415.337-5824 [email protected] HISTORIC RESOURCE EVALUATION 2100 STONE VALLEY ROAD ALAMO, CALIFORNIA TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Summary....................................................................................................................................2 II. Introduction...............................................................................................................................2 III. Methodology ............................................................................................................................2 IV. Description ..............................................................................................................................3 A. Site.................................................................................................................................3 B. Exterior...........................................................................................................................5 C. Interior ...........................................................................................................................6 V. Historic Context ........................................................................................................................6 A. Alamo.............................................................................................................................6 B. Project Site History ........................................................................................................8 C. Construction Chronology.............................................................................................12 D. Owners and Occupants ..............................................................................................13 VI. Evaluation of Historic Status ..................................................................................................13 A. Individual Eligibility ......................................................................................................14 • Criterion 1 (Events)......................................................................................................14 • Criterion 2 (Persons) ...................................................................................................14 • Criterion 3 (Architecture).............................................................................................14 • Criterion 4 (Information Potential)................................................................................14 VII. Integrity.................................................................................................................................15 VIII. Evaluation of Project Specific Impacts under CEQA...........................................................16 A. Proposed Project .........................................................................................................16 B. Status of Existing Building as a Historical Resource...................................................16 C. Determination of Significant Adverse Change under CEQA.......................................16 D. Analysis of Cumulative Impacts under CEQA .............................................................17 IX. Conclusion.............................................................................................................................17 X. Bibliography ...........................................................................................................................18 Interview...........................................................................................................................18 Maps ................................................................................................................................18 Published .........................................................................................................................18 Public Records.................................................................................................................18 XI. Appendix, aerial photos, 1974 -1993 ....................................................................................19 NOVEMBER, 2010 TIM KELLEY CONSULTING -1- HISTORIC RESOURCE EVALUATION 2100 STONE VALLEY ROAD ALAMO, CALIFORNIA I. SUMMARY 2100 Stone Valley Road is not individually eligible for listing on the California Register and is not otherwise a Historical Resource for CEQA purposes. Nor is it located within a potential historic district. The proposed project of demolishing the extant building and replacing it with a new fire station would not cause a direct negative impact on a Historical Resource, or contribute to a cumulative negative impact. II. INTRODUCTION Tim Kelley Consulting was engaged by San Ramon Valley Fire District to conduct an Historical Resource Evaluation (HRE) of 2100 Stone Valley Road, a single-family, one-story ranch style residence in connection with the proposed project of demolishing the existing building and replacing it with a new Fire Station. This report examines the property in order to determine if it is eligible for listing in the California Register or is a Historical Resource for CEQA purposes; and to evaluate the impact of the proposed project on historical resources. III. METHODOLOGY 1. The Northwest Information Center was queried for existing information on historic properties within the area of potential effects, with none being found. 2. Architectural Historian Karin Sidwell made a site visit to the 2100 Stone Valley Road on October 20, 2010. The exterior of the subject building was surveyed to document the existing structure. For determining construction dates and ownership history, several repositories were consulted including the Contra Costa County Assessor’s Office, the Contra Costa County Department of Conservation and Development, and the Contra Costa Historical Society. More widely available sources that were consulted for the building history include Sanborn Fire Insurance maps, Contra Costa County cadastral maps and historic aerial maps. For more general information on the history of the Contra Costa County and the town of Alamo, repositories consulted included the Contra Costa County Historical Society, the Museum of San Ramon Valley, as well as standard secondary sources on the development of the unincorporated Contra Costa County. A complete bibliography has been compiled and appears at the end of this report. NOVEMBER, 2010 TIM KELLEY CONSULTING -2- HISTORIC RESOURCE EVALUATION 2100 STONE VALLEY ROAD ALAMO, CALIFORNIA 3. As stated above, the Contra Costa County Historical Society and the Museum of San Ramon Valley were contacted regarding any knowledge of, or concerns with, historic properties in the area. No historic properties were identified in the immediate area of 2100 Stone Valley Road. IV. DESCRIPTION A. Site 2100 Stone Valley Road is located on the northeast corner of Miranda Avenue and Stone Valley Road on a 1.25 acre lot (Figure 1). The building rests above street-grade at the top of a knoll roughly located in the center of the parcel. The primary façade faces west on Miranda Avenue and an aggregate and brick pathway arches around the primary façade and leads to a courtyard on the south façade, an outdoor living area with porch on the north façade and a swimming pool at the north end of the parcel. A detached one-and-a-half-story garage rests on the south side of the building and the rear half of the garage is in use as an apartment. A stone wall runs the length of the western edge of the parcel (Figure 2). Figure 2. Stone Wall view facing west NOVEMBER, 2010 TIM KELLEY CONSULTING -3- HISTORIC RESOURCE EVALUATION 2100 STONE VALLEY ROAD ALAMO, CALIFORNIA A large portion of the parcel is open space with no formal landscaping and most of the trees and shrubbery are clustered near the San Ramon Creek at the north end of the parcel (Figure 3 and 4). Figure 3. Rear of the parcel view facing north Figure 4. Rear façade and surrounding open space, view facing south. NOVEMBER, 2010 TIM KELLEY CONSULTING -4- HISTORIC RESOURCE EVALUATION 2100 STONE VALLEY ROAD ALAMO, CALIFORNIA B. Exterior This building is a one-story single-family ranch-style house, irregular in-plan, clad in shiplap wood siding and capped with a cross-gable roof. The building is accessed by a wide, aggregate and brick driveway that slopes upward toward the two-car and apartment living- space garage and continues to the north ending at the base of the tiered pathway leading to the primary entrance. Square stone pillars flank the tiered pathway. The primary entrance, on the western façade, is sheltered by an enclosed entryway with square wooden columns. The entrance features a modern glazed and wood door and a semi-circular window on the left side. Three grouped, fixed, wood-sash windows punctuate the right side of the façade, which is recessed behind the main volume of the primary façade, and a tri-part metal casement window accents the left side. On the north side of the primary façade is a wing that projects outward to the north. This wing is punctuated by wood-sash, multi-paned French doors with multi-paned sidelights. A modern wooden deck extends from the French doors (Figure 5). To the right of the French Doors along the main volume