HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/19/1995, 1 - CONSIDERATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CHINATOWN HISTORIC DISTRICT IN SAN LUIS OBISPO. ��NIIRII�lllll�lln�l 11 Cit/ of San lui S OBISPO MEETING DATE:
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COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT ITS`"NUM :
FROM: Arnold Jonas, Community Development ec r; _By: Jeff H ssociate Planner
SUBJECT:Consideration of Cultural Heritage Co 'ttee recommendations regarding the establishment
of a Chinatown Historic District in San Luis Obispo.
CAO RECOM MOENDATION: By motion, designate a portion of the existing Downtown Historic
District as "Chinatown Historic District."
ADVISORY BODY RECONEM ENDATION
On July 24th, the Cultural Heritage Committee (CHC) held a public hearing to consider a citizens'
proposal to establish a Chinatown Historic District. The CHC unanimously supported the proposal and
recommended that the City Council implement the new historic district by designating a portion of the
Downtown Historic District as the "Chinatown Historic District"; and by initiating a public art project
that would commemorate the City's Chinese-American heritage, the subject of another council staff
report on tonight's agenda.
DISCUSSION
China-Chinar-vr Historic District. The City currently has four historical districts: Mill Street, Downtown,
C, ..;n, and the Railroad Historic District. The purpose of historical preservation districts is to
Identify older parts of San Luis Obispo that exhibit important aspects of our community's history and
merit special preservation efforts. In its 1995-96 workprogram, the CHC included "designation of new
historic districts" as one of its goals. Paula Juelke Carr, Alice Loh, and Margot McDonald have
researched the evolution of the San Luis Obispo's Chinatown and propose the establishment of a new
"Chinatown Historic District" within the boundaries of the existing Downtown Historic District. The
Chinatown District would include both sides of Palm Street, between Morro and Chorro Streets — the
historic center of the City's Chinese-American community.
Appendix E of the City's Historical Preservation Pmgmm Guidelines describes the steps needed to
establish a historic district (attached). If the CHC supports the new historic district designation, its
recommendation is usually forwarded to the Planning Commission and City Council. Once approved,
the new historic district boundaries are reflected in the General Plan and on the City's official Zoning
Map. Since the proposed district is already within an "H" zone, the practical effect of the change is
to rename a portion of the existing downtown historic district as "Chinatown Historic District." The
name change would not affect zoning or historic preservation procedures. It would, however, give
added recognition to the area's important historic role and contributions.
Data Summary
Applicants: Alice Loh, Margot McDonald, Paula Juelke Carr
Project Address: 900 Palm Street
Zoning: C-C-H, R-4-H.
General Plan: Central Commercial, Historic District; High-Density Residential, Historic District.
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Nia; COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
Staff Report
Page 2
Seton¢
Both sides of Palm Street, between Morro and Chorro Streets (Refer to attached boundary map), within
the existing Downtown Historic District.
Attachments:
A -Letter from Paula Carr re: Chinatown Historic District
B -Proposed Chinatown Historic District boundaries
c -Draft CHC Minutes
Council Reading File:
-Proposal for Chinatown Historic District
-Historic Districts and Criteria for Building Evaluations
24 July 1995
An open letter to the members of the Cultural Heritage Committee,City of San Luis Obispo
The recent demolition of the Kozak Building on Palm Street has focused renewed attention
on the historic character of the extensive Chinatown area that once clustered around Palm,
Chorro,and Morro Streets..Despite the loss of Chinatown's original wooden buildings,
and despite the construction of the Palm Street parking garage,important architectural
components of Chinatown remain standing,including the.most significant structure,the Ah
Louis Store. The Chong candy store building,across the street from the Ah Louis Store,
and the Shanghai Low Restaurant and Mee Heng Low Restaurant buildings(with their
distinctive signage)are also extant. Other properties,such as the Palm Theatre and Nectar
of the Bean,have incorporated design elements that are very much in keeping with their
neighbors. In addition,two archaeological sites—one now covered by the parking garage
and one recently exposed on the Kozak-lot—offer the potential for meaningful interpretation
of San Luis Obispo's historic Chinatown.
I would therefore like to propose that the Cultural Heritage Committee consider
recommending to the City Council a formal designation of a Chinatown Historic District
within the present Downtown Historic District,m recognition of Chinatown's distinctive
place in our community for well over a century. The creation of such a district might:
(1)encourage the present owners of Chinatown properties to retain those architectural
elements that contribute significantly to the public's awareness of Chinatown as a
recognizable entity;(2)discourage projects that tend to eradicate or obscure that public
awareness;and(3)encourage new Palm Street projects to take Chinatown's history into
consideration when plans are being formulated
While much smaller than the city-within-a-city that occupied a large section of San
Francisco,San Luis Obispo's Chinatown had much in common with the Chinatowns that
grew up in other Central Coast communities such as Ventura,Santa Barbara,and Cambria.
The visual reminders of these small but significant enclaves are very rare. San Luis Obispo
is fortunate to have a Chinatown that is as intact as it is;we are also fortunate to have the
opportunity to safeguard what remains and to use those remnants to tell an important story.
Sincerely,
Paula Juelke Carr
Research Historian
1801 Nrpomo Street
San Luis Obispo,CA 93401
(805)541-1201
ATTAM ENT A
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ATTACHMENT B
Draft
MINUTES �.-
SAN LUIS OBISPO
CULTURAL HI=AGE COIVEMIITTEE
Regular Meeting of July 24, 1995
The meeting convened at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Hearing Room, San Luis Obispo City Hall,
990 Palm Street.
ROLL CALL
Present: Vice-Chairperson Wendy Waldron, John Edmisten, Garth Kornreich, Dan
Krieger, Alice Loh, and Victoria Wood.
Absent: .Chairperson Astrid Gallagher.
Staff: Jeff Hook, Associate Planner.
APPROVAL OF MNUTFS: On a motion by Victoria Wood, seconded by Garth Kornreich,
the minutes of the regular meeting of June 26, 1995 were unanimously approved as submitted.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
1. Consideration of nominating the Ah Louis Store to the National Register of Historic
. Places, 800 Palm Street, C-C-H zone. Howard Louis, Property Owner.
Jeff Hook introduced the item, explaining that at its last meeting the CHC directed that this item
be placed on the July agenda for public hearing. He noted that three citizens, Alice Loh, Paula
Carr and Margot Mcdonald had researched the history of the Ah Louis Store, family members
and contextual history of Chinese-Americans in San Luis Obispo. He said that the applicants.
were hoping to get an endorsement from the CHC for the nomination, and some suggestions
and/or comments on the historic research. He said .the emphasis this and the following
Chinatown Historical District item was to give additional focus to the contributions of the
Chinese-American 'community and to give some architectural design guidance to future
development in the proposed district.
Acting Chairperson Waldron felt the historic documentation for the Ah Louis Store was very
complete and comprehensive and she wished to commend the applicants for their research work.
As clarification, Ms. Waldron noted that the CHC does not "nominate" properties to the
National Register but rather the CHC could suggest that the property appeared eligible for the
National Register and forward that assessment to the State Historic Preservation Office.
Dan Krieger said that the last time he had spoke to Howard Louis, Mr. Louis was inalterably
opposed to listing his store on the National Register. Mr. Krieger said he supported the
applicants' proposal but that the matter needed to be handled sensitively due to past injustices
which the Louis Family and'other Chinese-Americans had experienced in San Luis Obispo. He
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ATTACHMENT C
CHC Minutes, July 24, 1995
Page 2 �.-
suggested that the applicants need to meet Mr. Louis to resolve his concerns and "make amends"
if there had been some breach of etiquette.
Margot McDonald, 1205 George Street, conceded that initially, There may have been negative
feelings that the applicants should have approached Mr. Louis earlier in the application process,
but that they had recently met with Mr. Louis in an effort to keep him informed and involved.
His main concern appeared to be that listing might limit his future use of the property and we
explained that listing would not add any restrictions to future use of the property.
Alice Loh explained that Mr. Louis may be under a misunderstanding that if the property were
listed on the National Register he would be required to seismically retrofit the Ah Louis Store.
She said that she had explained to Mr. Louis possible tax benefits of historic rehabilitation, and
that seismic retrofit (of the unreinforced masonry built store) was not connected to the issue of
National Register listing.
Paula Julke Carr, 1801 Nipomo Street, read a letter describing the historic significance of the
City's Chinatown, and requested that the CHC consider establishing a Chinatown Historic
District along Palm Street between Morro and Chorro Streets. She noted that she was gathering
documentation to support the designation of this new historic district.
Margot McDonald, 1205 George Street, announced that she was preparing an application to
nominate the Ah Louis Store to the National Register of Historic Places, and that she would give
the nomination to Jeff Hook when it was ready for CHC consideration.
Dan Krieger suggested that CHC Chairperson Astrid Gallagher be asked to contact Mr. Louis
to ask for his support for listing. Mr. Krieger stressed the need to get Mr. Louis' support
before moving ahead with the National Register application. He also suggested that the
application note "right up front" that the Ah Louis Family was primarily responsible for the
County's early transportation infi-astructure during the 19th century, including major roads and
railroad tracks. He had a few other editorial changes and complemented the overall quality of
the submittal.
On motion of Alice Loh, seconded by John Edmisten, the Committee unanimously endorsed the
proposed listing of the Ah Louis Store (6-0 vote), subject to the understanding that the
application for National Register Listing would only be submitted with the property owner's
approval.
2. Consideration of designation of a Chinatown Historic District,generally bounded by
Pahn, Chorro, Morro, and Monterey Streets, C-C-H zone.
Paula Carr explained that she, Alice Loh and Margot McDonald had researched the town's Luis
Obispo's Chinatown, including the Ah Louis Store, and were initiating this historic district
designation to recognize the contribution of the Chinese-American community to San Luis
CHC Minutes, July 24, 1995
Page 3
Obispo. She showed a photograph board of the elements that contributed to architectural design
elements that made the proposed Chinatown historic district recognizable and distinct. Although
other Central California Coast cities had Chinatowns, including Lompoc, Santa Barbara, and
Ventura, very little is left of them. San Luis Obispo is fortunate to have as much left of its
Chinatown as it does — more than most other small communities. She explained that our
Chinatown had several key elements which typified historic Chinatowns, including the use of
bright red paint, Chinese writing characters, use of "dragon" images, and brightly colored
tilework. She suggested that in connection with the historic district designation the City also
identify the locations of other key Chinese-American landmarks like the old Ah Louis Brickyard
and the old Chinese cemetery which had over 200 graves — now with a trailer park developed
over part of it. She proceeded to describe the exhibits included in the historic district proposal,
dated July 24, 1995.
Mr. Hook noted that the proposed Chinatown Historic District was within the existing
Downtown historic district; consequently no rezoning or expansion of the historic district was
involved. It was basically a name change, changing a one-block portion of the Downtown
Historic District to the Chinatown Historic District.
Wendy Waldron complemented Ms. Carr, Ms. Loh and Ms. McDonald on their research and
thanked them for taking this project on. General discussion followed on the advantages of the
proposed district, and the perception of many, including the late architectural historian Carleton
Winslow, that the City's Chinatown retained much of its original architectural integrity.
In answer to a question from John Edmisten, Mr. Krieger explained that Ah Louis Store was
originally built as a wood structure in about 1868-69, and then rebuilt in brick in about 1890.
Its first use was a chinese restaurant, later changed to a retail store.
On motion of Dan Krieger, seconded by Victoria Wood, the Commission recommended that the
Planning Commission and City Council designate a Chinatown Historic District on Palm Street,
approximately between Chorro and Morro Streets, as proposed by the applicants. The motion
was unanimously approved on a 6-0 vote.
DISCUSSION/ADMINISTRATIVE UEMS
3. Consideration of initiating a public art mural for the City Parking Structure located at
920 Palm Street (adjacent to Ah Louis Store), to honor the City's Chinese-American
heritage.
Wendy Waldron introduced the item, explaining that the idea for reinitiating a public art project
on the Southwest wall of the Palm Street Parking Structure had grown directly from the historic
research that CHC and the applicants had discussed, and that Ms. Carr, Ms. Loh and Ms.
McDonald had submitted a .proposal for a public art Chinatown Mural on the Palm Street
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CHC Minutes, July 24, 1995
Page 4
Parking Structure.
Dan Krieger explained the history of public art at this site and problems encountered with the
previous "Palm Tree" sculptures which were never built. Mr. Krieger felt that the public art
should strongly reflect the district's Chinese-American heritage and must be sensitive to the
needs of Mr. Howard Lewis, owner of the adjacent Ah Louis Store. The needs and desires of
the local Native American groups should also be considered.
General discussion followed on the type of public art which may be appropriate at this location,
and the suggested composition of the selection committee who would review art proposals for
this site.
Mr. Hook explained that the Committee did not need to specify the details of the public art
review process since that's already addressed in adopted City policies; but rather the CHC
should make a recommendation to the City Council as to the desirability of initiating a public
art project at this location. Since the project may involve City funds, the City Council will
ultimately need to review and approve it if it is to move forward.
Committeemembers felt strongly that the public art should reflect historic Chinatown
architectural/cultural influences, and that the public art selection committee should include:
Howard Louis or his designee, representatives of the Chinese-American community, historian,
SLO County Arts Council, applicants, CHC members.
Mr. Hook said that the applicants' proposal was detailed enough to take to the City Council if
the CHC supported it, and that if the CHC endorsed the proposal, staff would add the necessary
details suggested by the CHC prior to council review.
On motion of Dan Krieger, seconded by Victoria Wood, the Committee voted unanimously (6-0)
to forwarded its endorsement of the proposed Chinatown Public Art Mural to the City Council.
INFORMATION SHARING
4. Bowden/La Loma Adobe Block Party
Mr. Hook explained that the "block party" to fabricate adobe blocks hasn't happened yet, but
that he and Bob Vessely are trying to firm up a date. He said he would let CHC members know
personally when a date was set. He said the status of the property was that the owner was now
interested in having a resident caretaker to live on the property while repairing the adobe; and
that a certificate of compliance had been granted for two lots. The City is still reviewing an
application for lot line adjustment and environmental review, and that staff was working with
the applicant's representative, John Kuden,on an arrangement to preserve and allow the eventual
restoration of the adobe.
CHC Minutes, July 24, 1995 �_. ..
Page 5
5. Upcoming CHC agenda items.
Victoria Wood suggested that the CHC discuss the closing of the Earthling Bookstore as it
relates to seismic retrofitting at its upcoming August meeting. There was general discussion of
that item, including possible factors which may have contributed to the store's closing.
Committee members asked staff to place the Post-Earthquake/Disaster Recovery Guidelines on
the August meeting agenda.
Jeff Hook said he would contact David Look with the Department of the Interior on this subject,
and prepare some draft guidelines for the Committee's discussion at the August meeting.
Jeff Hook updated the Committee on the former Blackstone Hotel status, and asked CHC
members to forward any additional historical documentation they had to Mr. Hook or to Ms.
Kristy Thomas, a CHC volunteer who was preparing the historic documentation.
Jeff Hook presented a letter addressed to Astrid Gallagher from Clay Singer, expressing
concerns about the City's procurement process for archaeological services in connection with
the Kozak site. Mr. Hook pointed out that there were several factual errors in Mr. Singer's
letter and in the attached letter from Roberta Greenwood, an unsuccessful bidder on the project.
He said that Public Works staff had followed City bidding procedures, and that the City had
signed a contract with Mr. Thor Conway, an archaeologist with excellent credentials who had
submitted a bid within the City Engineer's estimate cost of work, about $20,000. Mr. Hook
noted that the archaeological report prepared in connection with the Kozak excavation would be
referred to the CHC for its comments and evaluation.
At 8 pm the meeting was adjourned to the regular meeting of the Cultural Heritage Committee
on Monday, August 28, 1995 at 5:30 pm in the Council Hearing Room (Room 9), in San Luis
Obispo City Hall.
Respectfully Submitted,
Jeff Hook, CHC Secretary
�7-ftmin