By Bill
I’VE WRITTEN ABOUT MANY OF THE items on the Landmarks Commission agenda tonight.
The embattled ficus trees on Second and Fourth streets between Wilshire Boulevard and Broadway are back. City Hall wants to remove 23 hazardous trees and relocate about 30 others. Opposing the plan are assorted “greens” and members of Santa Monica Tree Savers who want to landmark the trees in order to stop the project.
If they aren’t landmarked or continued again, ficus supporters have hinted at litigation or other action to follow. These trees will die of old age before the dust clears on this fiasco. Nothing that I’ve read or seen tells me the trees are historic in any sense, but there’s always a chance that this commission might grant them landmark status. They wouldn’t do that? Would they? 2617 Third Street is in the heart of the Third Street Neighborhood Historical District. The staff report describes a single story, front house as an historic structure built in 1905. Mark Woolen, the property owner, wants to add a large, “modern,” two floor, “maximum 1,440 square foot addition” onto a “non-historical” 1946-era accessory building in the back of the property. Tonight, the commission will consider “a certificate of appropriateness” for the addition’s design.
This project was before landmarks, June 11, July 9 and Nov. 12 of last year for design review. Many neighbors eager to protect the historical “period” aura of the neighborhood oppose the project. Commissioners agreed at their Nov. 12 meeting that “a modern structure could be constructed in a historic district, however the no-contributing (modern) structure must be responsive to the context and not overwhelm the onsite or adjacent historic buildings …” That kind of defeats the purpose of having an historic district if non-period construction is allowed, doesn’t it? Well, this is Santa Monica.
A couple of weeks ago, the same commission approved demolition of a small 1953-era duplex with garage and construction of a new, single-family residence at 2642 2nd Street — also located within the Third Street Historic District. Neighbors concerned that another proposed contemporary project (like the one at 2617 3rd Street) would forever alter the characteristics of the district have filed appealed the commission’s decision to City Council who will have final word on this project. Let’s hope that they are more sensitive to the concept of a historic district than, apparently, the Landmarks Commission is.
The NuWilshire Theater at 1314-1316 Wilshire Blvd. is also on the agenda. Property owner, LaBrea- Washington Co., LLC, wants to extensively remodel the closed movie house which was built in 1930 as a single auditorium theater with retail storefronts flanking the foyer. The large stage-house at the back suggests the Wilshire could accommodate live theatrical productions as well as motion pictures.
The staff report calls it an excellent example of Art Deco architecture although their report notes a 1960s remodel that involved filling in windows, replacing the marquee, removing the free standing ticket box-office, removing the existing tile foyer floor and stripping architectural details off adjacent store-fronts.
I wrote in a previous column that in 1977, the single auditorium was divided into two “shoebox” movie theaters. There is no information in the staff report as to how much of the interior of the original auditorium or stage remains. The current twin-screen configuration appears as if much of the original interior, including a balcony may have been just covered over.
The only thing considered for landmark status is the street facade. Although staff feels that enough of this elevation remains after the disastrous 1960s remodel to warrant landmark status I disagree.
The property owner plans to demolish the theater itself and replace it with retail stores and u n d e r g r o u n d parking while preserving only the bastardized 1930s facade. The same preservation thing was done to the La Reina Theater in Sherman Oaks about a dozen years ago. The La Reina’s art deco front wall is still there. Its freestanding box-office is now a display case for the retail store behind the facade. The original backlighted marquee panels have been replaced with a digital “stadium scoreboard” readout. It looks just awful. But, any thoughts of landmarking the entire Wilshire Theater and restoring it is wishful thinking.
Conversely, we’re lucky to have an enlightened local property owner like Jim Rosenfeld, who owns the Aero Theater on Montana Avenue. Rosenfeld took the time to find a lessee (American Cinematheque) who retained the Aero’s single auditorium and even make upgrades to seating and flooring, bathrooms, concessions, sound and projection -- making it a true community gem.
This is not the case, here. What we’ll get is a designer blue jeans store behind another compromised ersatz 1930s facade.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 14, 2008. Read the original PDF.