> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Landmarks prove a source of drama - URL: https://www.smdp.com/landmarks-prove-a-source-of-drama/ - Published: 2007-06-28T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T01:26:30.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Government & Politics, Ocean Park, #archive-import, Homeless *Council members bump heads over two historical houses* CITY HALL Two dilapidated old houses, each facing a different barrier to preservation, were given a second chance at survival by the City Council on Tuesday in a bizarre turn of events that resulted in one council member walking out in protest. But the decisions to help preserve two historically designated structures — an approximately 102-year-old beach-facing cottage on Ocean Avenue and a so-called “shotgun” house temporarily displaced at an old lumberyard — came about in two very different ways. Following a hearing on the appeal of the landmarking of the yellow cottage, City Council effectively denied the appellant’s request by not taking a vote on the matter. Later in the evening, the council voted to move the city’s only remaining shotgun house — a homeless one at that — to a permanent location at the corner of Norman Place and Second Street. Early in the evening, it appeared the council might put off taking action on the Ocean Park cottage because there were just five council members present. Mayor Richard Bloom and Council member Bobby Shriver were not in attendance on Tuesday. The appellant and property owner — the University of Illinois Foundation — was represented by Santa Monica Attorney Chris Harding, who requested the item be continued in light of the no-shows. The one-story cottage was designated as a landmark by the Landmarks Commission in August 2006\. The property owner, which intends to sell the cottage, subsequently filed an appeal to City Council, challenging the landmark status. “I felt, at that point, being put in the position to need four out of five was simply unfair,” Harding said Wednesday. “The appeal warranted a full or near full Council.” Mayor Pro Tem Herb Katz and Council members Pam O’Connor and Bob Holbrook concurred, saying it wouldn’t be fair to hold a hearing. Council members Ken Genser and Kevin McKeown disagreed, as the appellant had already requested the matter be postponed on a previous occasion. Genser mused that it is unlikely there will be a full Council any time soon, adding that the appellant could continue to get continuances until they had the right combination of Council members to sway the vote in their favor. That’s when O’Connor abruptly stormed out, leaving her fellow Council members locked in a 2-2 tie. “I thought it was unfair not to have the continuance,” O’Connor said Wednesday. The tension between Council members continued when Holbrook said he didn’t intend on casting a vote at all, believing the appellant wasn’t given a fair hearing. Katz glanced at his fellow Council members, asking if anyone was going to make a motion to deny or uphold the appeal. When nobody spoke, the appeal failed. The University of Illinois Foundation is now considering several options, which could include litigation against City Hall. In reviewing several reports regarding the fate of the beach cottage — one by City Hall consultant PCR Services, one by University of Illinois consultant Mary Jo Winder and another conducted by preservationist group Save the Cottage’s consultant, Galvin Preservation Associates — city staff decided to recommend that City Council uphold the appeal. Both PCR Services and Winder found that the cottage would not qualify for landmark status under the landmark ordinance. Galvin Preservation Associates, on the other hand, felt it met landmark status based on its beach-facing orientation. “Staff certainly agrees this type of bungalow contributes to the community,” said Santa Monica Senior Planner Amanda Schachter.“The decision tonight, however, is whether the building is of sufficient quality.” Schachter referred to several other cottages in the area that are better examples of the mass-plan vernacular cottage style once popular in Los Angeles, including three on Fraser Avenue and two on Wadsworth Avenue. In addition, not all of the current features on the cottage are original, such as the enclosed front porch, she said. Several Landmarks Commissioners came out in support of preserving the cottage, including Chairwoman Nina Fresco and Ruthann Lehrer. “From the beach on that block, you can see a series of multi-story buildings from different eras, and then in their midst is a small Victorian cottage, like a window back in time,” Lehrer said. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/062807-09_01.jpg) A HOUSE DIVIDED: Concerned residents take to the streets in efforts to sway city officials to spare a historic beach cottage on Ocean Avenue in February. (Photo: Photo courtesy) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/062807-09_02.jpg) A HOUSE DIVIDED: Concerned residents take to the streets in efforts to sway city officials to spare a historic beach cottage on Ocean Avenue in February. (Photo: Photo courtesy) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 28, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/062807.pdf?ref=smdp.com)