CITY OF GLENDALE INTERDIVISIONAL COMMUNICATION STAFF REPORT Date: July 18, 2019 To: Historic Preservation Commission From: Jay Platt, Senior Urban Designer Subject: Recommendation regarding Glendale Register of Historic Resources Nomination and Mills Act Contract for 1837 Sherer Lane Property Owner: Ian and Jennifer Marks Property Legal Description: ___________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION The owner of the single-family house at 1837 Sherer Lane has requested that the property be considered for local listing on the Glendale Register of Historic Resources. Based on a field visit to the property, information on the property obtained from City records, and the nomination and historical documentation submitted by the owner (Exhibit A), the property appears to meet the criteria for eligibility to the Glendale Register of Historic Resources under Criterion 3 provided certain altered features are returned to be closer to their original appearance as discussed in this staff report. Therefore, the Planning Division recommends that the Historic Preservation Commission recommend to the City Council that the property at 1837 Sherer Lane be designated as a local historic resource and be added to the Glendale Register of Historic Resources. The property owner has also requested to enter into a Mills Act contract with the City of Glendale for the benefit of property tax savings in exchange for continued preservation of the property. The Planning Division additionally recommends that the Historic Preservation Commission recommend to the City Council that the City Manager be authorized to enter into a “Mills Act” historical property contract, with conditions to return altered features closer to their original appearance, with the property owners under the Section 15.20.070A of the Glendale Municipal Code. Glendale’s Historic Preservation Ordinance establishes the process for designating historic properties locally and outlines the procedure for considering future alterations of those officially designated properties, which includes the review role of the Historic Preservation Commission. HPC Staff Report Glendale Register Nomination: 1837 Sherer Lane Page 1 of 5 HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE AND ELIGIBILITY OF PROPERTY Historical Background 1837 Sherer Drive is a two-story single-family residence located in the Verdugo Woodlands neighborhood. It was designed by the firm of Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury in the Mediterranean Revival style and built in 1926. It is an excellent and mostly intact example of its style and the work of a significant architectural firm that was based in Pasadena and designed a number of notable works throughout the region. It was built for businessman Charles H. Howland and his second wife Mary May Howland. Mr. Howland died in 1934 and his wife remained in the house until her death in 1942. The nomination provides an excellent, thoroughly researched historical background regarding the Howlands and the work of Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury, which is attached to this report as Exhibit A and incorporated by reference. The nomination suggests the property is eligible for Glendale Register listing under Criteria 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Staff believes it is eligible only under Criterion 3 for the quality of its architecture, presuming altered features are brought closer to their original appearance through conditions added by the Commission to any Mills Act contract it recommends for City Council approval. Staff’s position is detailed in the “Findings of Eligibility” section below. Architectural Description 1837 Sherer Lane is a wood-frame, stucco clad structure with the blocky massing typical of its style. It is placed on an irregularly shaped lot that is the result of earlier, which took place, at least in part, in 1976. For this reason, its primary façade does not address the street and is instead oriented toward the views across Verdugo Canyon (its original address was 1750 Verdugo Road). The asymmetrical composition feature a main two-story volume set on a plinth above the level of the driveway and motor court. The front entry is accessed via a pair of staircases with stepped cheek wall that run parallel to the façade. The landing between the two stairways feature a stone plaque carved with the Howland family crest. The stairs open onto an entry terrace that extends across the main façade and widens toward the south, where it fronts onto a one-story loggia appended to the side of the two-story volume. The loggia features two simple round columns, masonry lattice railings, and a large arched opening that faces the street. At the north end of the house, the first story extends over a two-car garage, creating a lower two-story volume. The garage features arched openings and wood doors. All of these volumes feature tile-clad hipped roofs, which follow the various façade articulations and visually unify the overall composition. The arched entry door features a heavy stone surround and wrought iron grill work above the door. The door opening was partially infilled by a previous owner and the existing door dates to that work. Three tall arched openings front onto the entry terrace at the living room and feature French doors and arched transoms. The three window openings at the second floor above the entry terrace are separated by simple square pilasters, which give this area the appearance of a loggia. The front façade also features stucco lattice grills placed in front of windows at several locations, and a wrought iron window grill (reja) and balconet at two first floor windows. Most windows throughout the house have three-light, wood casement sash, although there are HPC Staff Report Glendale Register Nomination: 1837 Sherer Lane Page 2 of 5 several replacement windows at both the front and rear facades. Two decorative chimneys project above the roof; a third chimney of simple design was added at the rear façade in 1993. The rear façade is more articulated than the front and is more Spanish Colonial Revival in style. It is relatively unadorned and features rectangular window and door openings. The first floor opens onto a relatively narrow rear terrace that is not landscaped. A stairway of relatively recent construction rises alongside the retaining wall that supports the upper yard, which is landscaped with grass. The stucco clad perimeter walls along the property line are not original and the original condition of this area is unknown openings. The decorative block retaining walls at the motor court and the ledgestone planter walls adjacent to the entry stairs are also not original. Alterations and Integrity 1837 Sherer Lane retains a high degree of design and material integrity, though some alterations have been made in recent years. The most prominent changes occur at the front entry and various window openings. The original arched entry opening was reduced in size by the addition of a strip of recessed wall, clad in rough stucco, running along both jambs and the top arch. A single-leaf paneled wood door and solid arched wood transom are set within the new opening. This work was performed by a previous owner relatively recently. Real estate photographs depict an earlier double-leaf wood door, also with a solid wood transom. The provenance of the earlier door is unknown, but it does not appear original itself due to its style and crisp, patina-free appearance. Four window openings at the front façade contain non-original sash – two sliders and a casement above the garage and a multi-light, double-leaf casement at the second floor “loggia” area. Though these windows are constructed of wood, they do not reflect the appearance of the known original windows. Several windows at the rear façade are also not original and not appropriate to the style. The two garage doors are appropriate wood replacements that do fit the style and overall appearance of the house. A pair of French doors that open onto a garden tucked behind the first floor logia and a sliding door at the rear terrace off the kitchen are also later additions, but these appear to be more appropriate than the window change outs. Finding of Eligibility After reviewing the nomination submitted by the current owner and its supporting documentation, as well as visiting the site, Planning Division staff concludes that the property appears to meet Criterion 3 of the eligibility criteria for listing on the Glendale Register of Historic Resources, particularly if the inappropriate entry door and window change outs are remedied through Mills Act conditions. The nomination suggests that the property’s association with Charles Howland, descendent of a prominent early American family and businessman associated with the Continuous Brick Kiln Building could make the property significant several criteria: Criterion 1 (association with important events or broad cultural patterns) for the early family members arrival to America on the Mayflower and participation in the whaling industry; Criterion 2 (association with persons important in local, state, or national history) for the same associations; Criterion 4 (archaeological potential) due to Howland’s sense of adventure; and Criterion 5 (early heritage – the incentive criterion, which applies only to properties not meeting any of Criteria 1 through 4) for its location on land once belonging to the Verdugo family. The nomination does not provide any information that Mr. Howland’s life or career rose to a level of significance in local, state, or national history HPC Staff Report Glendale Register