Preservation Awards

2010 Annual Preservation Awards

Historic Preservation Award Nomination Form 2010

2009 Preservation Award Recipients

1530-1532 9th Street
by Richard W. Rutter
Award Recipients: Mohamed Elhashash and City of Alameda, Development Services Department
In 1891, two wooden high-basement Queen Anne cottages were built on adjacent lots by Cyrus A. Brown. He had moved to Alameda in 1876, and soon after his arrival began constructing residences on speculation. By the time he was through, Mr. Brown had completed more than 25 residences on the island in addition to a number of residences in surrounding communities.

At some point in the past, the houses at 1530 and 1532 9th Street came under the ownership of one owner. Over the years, they were subject to a variety of cosmetic remodelings, most of which were intended to reduce maintenance costs. Gingerbread trim and Victorian brickabrac which got in the way of a long-ago cement asbestos shingling campaign disappeared. That which didn’t, got covered up in the process. Both houses were sold to Mr. Mohamed Elhashash, the current owner, in 2005.

To assist rehabilitating the buildings, Mr. Elhashash applied to the City of Alameda’s Substantial Rehabilitation Program. This publicly funded program provides financial and technical assistance to private property owners who wish to improve the condition of the City’s existing housing stock, which in turn creates affordable rental housing units for low-income families. Housing Choice Vouchers are given to qualifying low-income families. Rental units created under the Substantial Rehabilitation Program are then rented to people with Housing Choice Vouchers. A property owner must agree to rent these low-income units for a period of not less than 15-years in order to draw funds and technical assistance from the program.

Rehabilitation of existing structures, especially those over a hundred years old likely will be fraught with many unknowns during construction. The community desired that Victorian gingerbread and trim, long gone, be replaced during the rehabilitation process. Until the existing asbestos siding was removed, it was unknown how much of this trim might be encapsulated, and how much would be missing, and thus have to be reproduced. New properly proportioned and detailed Victorian gingerbread and trim is quite expensive in comparison to how a modern building is detailed and constructed. If a lot of Victorian trim must be provided, and expense contingencies for it have not been built into a construction budget, resistance to its installation will soon follow.

Alameda citizens value their community and their cherished Victorian houses. As a result, projects which come under the community’s magnifying glass can at times become a frustration for the less committed owner. During this project, Mr. Elhashash and Alameda’s Development Services Department came under the community magnifying glass, yet both remained committed to the desire to go the distance, and to do a good project.

After the asbestos shingles were removed, it was discovered that much of the original surfaces were intact under the asbestos, including the panels between and under the windows and the scalloped shingles in the gables. “Ghosts” or “shadows” of other missing trim were also revealed under the asbestos and this information, combined with detailing on two other relatively unaltered houses also built by C. A. Brown one block away at 1430-32 9th Street were used as a basis for replicating many of the missing trim elements. The original design of the 1430-32 9th Street houses appear to have been very similar to 1530-32, so the neighboring houses were good models.

Some of the elaborately turned original porch posts were encapsulated within the asbestos covered posts and other porch posts were milled by Pagliacco Turning & Milling of Woodacre, California to match these. New porch and stair railings milled by the owner were modeled after those at 1430-32 9th Street. Other millwright work was done by Mad River Woodworks in Blue Lake, California, and additional interior trim and custom moldings cut by White Brothers in Oakland.

Note the horizontal pipe rails above the restored wood porch railings installed so as to meet the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rail height standards while still preserving the important proportions of the restored wood railing. New double glazed wood windows, manufactured by Uribe Co. Windows, Doors and Cabinets in Oakland, were installed that are almost identical to the original wood windows.

The final product shows a superior effort which has received universal approval, and deserves to be recognized.

The old Clamp Swing building has new life as a community art center with a gallery, theater and classroom and the first work/live lofts permitted by the city of Alameda.

Transforming a former industrial building may seem like a common occurrence these days, but what was required for Janet Koike to turn the Clamp Swing building into a community cultural arts center and work/live lofts—while preserving the historic integrity of its architecture—was no small feat. Removal of lead paint was only a part of the work undertaken since 2003 when Koike bought the building that was the site of a price tag holders company going back to the 1920s.

Most everything the eye can see, and much that is not visible, has received attention during the scope of work, including the foundation. The foundation presented the most challenging endeavor, and was a surprise project in the process of transforming the building. Because of the structural condition and age, coupled with the fact that it was built on landfill, the whole facility started to creak and windows were popping out with the building’s movement during this work. The team quickly responded by shoring up the building with huge pieces of lumber.

An unknown aspect of the building discovered when the project was launched was the condition of the roof. After opening up the ceiling, it was discovered that it had been damaged in a long-ago fire, requiring the replacement of the whole roof. While this was an expensive set-back to the project, the result is a gorgeous wood beam ceiling that now runs throughout the whole top floor and really shows itself off in the theater room where the beam ceiling curves over the expansive space now used for performances, dances and classes.

Careful attention was given to retain the industrial look of the building. For example, concrete strengthened with rebar was used on the façade between the garage doors, but only after every brick was carefully removed, cleaned and then later put back in place to surround the rebar and concrete. The result is a stronger structure with no visible difference from before.

Other improvements comprise the addition of radiant heated floors throughout the building, an ADA lift connecting the two floors, and landscaping including a wrought iron fence at the perimeter of the property.

Considering the amount of work done, it’s a testament to the quality of that work that the building’s legacy is still felt and seen today. Case in point, the Alameda Rug Works sign painted on the side of the building has been designated an historic landmark, and has therefore been left intact to remind all who pass by that Rhythmix Cultural Works is in fact the third use of the beautiful industrial building on Blanding Avenue. Today, the old Clamp Swing building has new life as a community art center with a gallery, theater and classroom and the first work/live lofts permitted by the city of Alameda. It serves as an example of successful adaptation of an historical industrial building in Alameda, paving the way for others. As Koike noted on a recent tour of the building, “We really wanted to keep the feeling of studios and industrial workspace. We put our soul into this project, and that’s why it’s remained a special building—you can feel it.” Rhythmix Cultural Works is a superb example of adaptive reuse, taking its place in Alameda’s community in large part because it maintains the architectural integrity of the past while providing a highly functional, modern space for art.

Comparable homes were used as references to return the building to its Italianate heritage.

In January 2008, John Buestad & Ken Carvalho acquired the property with the intent of building their new construction office, shop & yard. The building that sat on the property was originally built in 1874 for N. H. Maybee; its builder and architect is unknown. Their original plan was to donate the building to the City of Alameda Parks & Recreation Department for the new Krusi Park office. However, the drawn out time frame of the approval process made this plan unrealistic. They then worked diligently with their Architect, Norman Sanchez, and Simone Wolter and Jon Biggs of Alameda’s Planning Department to come up with a way to preserve only the original 14’ x 28’ structure and to remove all of the non-original and unpermitted additions. They also worked out a plan to relocate the house to the front of the lot in order to align it with the set back typical of the other Victorian homes on the block. This permitted the space needed to construct the new Buestad Construction Office and the required parking spaces in the rear of the site.

After a number of revisions to the site plan, an agreeable plan was put forth to the Historic Advisory Board (HAB) and it was unanimously approved at their February 2008 meeting. A Major Design Review Application was then submitted to the Planning Board and in their March 2008 meeting the item was heard. Some neighbors expressed concern about the presumed use for the house, but it was pointed out by the Planning Board that even though it looked like a home, it had been used as an office for the prior 10 years and a residence was not permissible under the City’s General Plan and Zoning Ordinance. Hence, the project was once again unanimously approved.

After a number of issues were resolved regarding the soil conditions on the site and the rear building’s foundation, in May a complete set of plans were submitted to the City for approval. The plans incorporated the original door and window casing details as well as picture mold, chair rail, and wooden floors (note the original 1”x 4” Dougas Fir Tongue & Groove flooring was too badly damaged over the years to be saved and thus a new oak floor was installed over the top of it). The exterior double hung windows, with their two lites over two lites configuration, were recommended by the Alameda Architectural Preservation Society (AAPS), since this was the typical window design for buildings of this type in the early 1870s. Since the original porch and front door had been removed, comparable homes were used (the two Italianate cottages on the south side of Buena Vista Avenue next to the Alameda Market Place) as references.

On June 23rd the permits were issued and the first step was to bring in the big equipment to demolish the rear “non-original” additions. Once they were out of the way. Rogers House Movers cribbed up the house and rolled it forward approximately 30’ and moved it north approximately 7’. A new foundation was constructed to accommodate the building whose finish floor was only 6” above the exterior grade, all while the rear building was under construction.

For cost reasons, the underground utilities lagged behind so that both buildings could be connected at the same time. After waiting 18 weeks for PG & E and EBMUD and waiting for permission from Burlington Northern Santa Fe to dig under the abandoned railroad tracks in the street, the Maybee Building had its own gas, water, and sewer. Alameda Power & Telecom was “Johnny-on-the-spot” and connected the underground power.

The building’s exterior colors were modeled after the Southern Pacific Railroad as it is rumored that in the 1920’s–1940’s the home was used as an office for the stationmaster who was responsible for the commercial traffic onto the island over the Fruitvale Railroad Bridge to the bustling West End railroad yards (now abandoned by Alameda Belt Line). On January 14, 2009 the building was finished and Harding’s Landscape Maintenance became its newest tenant—so in 12 months the land was acquired, HAB approval was given, Planning Board approval was secured, City permits were issued and the construction was completed.

It just goes to show that if the owners are willing to spend the time and money, the City Staff & Boards are accommodating, and the sun and moon are slightly aligned, old structures like the Maybee Building can be saved, restored and reused.

A Legacy in Progress-
2310 Clement Avenue
by Nancy Hird
Award Recipient: William Emberley

The building’s front façade material is dark red standard brick but the remainder is a rare hollow tile terra cotta brick.

Most long time Alamedans think of 2310 Clement as “J and J Plumbing” and to some later as “Bobcat Plumbing”. The building was originally built for Joseph T. Cavanaugh in 1924 as the “Cavanaugh Overall Laundry and Supply Company” which supplied the laundry needs of the shipping industry along Alameda’s north shore.

An active builder in Alameda during the 1920s, Myron H. Fish designed and built the structure for $5,000 leaving his signature peaked parapet treatment seen in his work throughout the city. The wood framed construction features inlaid brick. The front façade material is dark red standard brick but the remainder is a rare hollow tile terra cotta brick. Unfortunately, at one time some of the hollow tile was painted and current owner Bill Emberley is in the process of removing that paint to expose the original surface.

Mr. Emberley is a lifetime restorer beginning in his youth fixing and painting the homes of his parents’ friends as a way to earn money. He began Edit One, his video production company, in a San Francisco building that housed the first brewery and slowly restored the building into habitable space to lease to dot com companies. In 1995, he moved his family to Alameda and bought a Queen Anne to restore while he looked for warehouse space in Alameda to house his company. In 2002, he heard about the building on Clement and made an offer on it before it went to market.

It is often said the lack of money helps the preservation process because people don’t have the resources to “muck things up”. Bill Emberley’s restoration philosophy is born of this circumstance. Rather than hiring someone to come in and quickly rehabilitate a space or structure and/or using Home Depot like materials, he thinks of a project as an “archeological dig”. He is in no great rush and takes his time to restore and preserve to ensure a 100 year old building will remain a work of art 100 years from now. The old laundry building on Clement is no exception and he looks to it as his “legacy” (and last) project. The boarded up windows have been replaced or restored one at a time over the period of eight months. When possible, he restores the old rather than replacing with new and works with what is there. “If wood has divots, it adds character”.

The front of the building at 2310 Clement is nearly complete inside and out and the rear half remains a work in progress. One of the final touches planned for the front is to replace the original sign painted on the east side of the building that can be barely seen on the hollow tile brick. The sign will once again say, “Cavanaugh Overall Laundry and Supply Co., Inc. JT Cavanaugh”.

The Alameda Theater on opening night, May 22, 2008. The blade sign and marquee canopy have been restored and repainted. The black-and-white-striped awnings have been put up to match the originals.

The historic Art Deco Alameda Theater is convincingly the most distinctive building in Park Street’s downtown. When first opened in 1932, the Theater had one of the largest screens in the Bay Area and was the most exuberant theater within the City of Alameda. The grand scale effort of this theater transformed Alameda as a predominant “theater destination” in the greater Bay Area.

The Alameda Theater was designed by the renowned San Francisco architect, Timothy L. Pflueger, who designed the eclectic Castro Theater, in San Francisco, in 1922 and the elaborate Paramount Theater, in Oakland, in 1931. The Paramount and Alameda Theaters were the first Depression-era buildings to incorporate and integrate the work of numerous creative artists into their architecture and their successful orchestration of the various artistic disciplines into an original and harmonious whole.

The Alameda Theater’s exterior incorporates deeply incised and intricate Moorish Revival rosettes on cream-colored smoothly curved sides of Art Nouveau flowers in bas relief rising between eight vertical Moderne speed lines. The Art Deco interior design used imitation silver and gold leaf for accents and warm colors for a stylized mezzanine mural with a hint of Cubism. In the interest of economy, the Alameda’s floor plan was nearly identical to that of the El Rey Theater, in Los Angeles, including twin curved staircases, and some floral and geometric elements were adapted from the Paramount Theater.

As the Paramount and Alameda Theaters shared many of the same original finishes and details, the restoration team adaptively worked with the Paramount curators for references and recommendations to create the best of the old and the new when the theater reopened in 2008. Experiencing the restored Alameda Theater is perhaps best stated by a Yelper’s review:

“The Alameda Theater is absolutely beautiful. It is so much fun to walk in and feel like you are going back in time. The refurbishment of the Art Deco Theater was done expertly and accurately. It is great fun to go to see a movie in the original theater—especially on Friday night.”

A number of Alamedans still remember the Alameda Theater’s opening day, Aug. 16, 1932. This event hosted 5,000 guests for its dramatic Grand-Opening night, with the lobby’s glittery lights and grand Art Deco style, with usherettes in classy, colorful costumes. The guest of honor was California Governor James Rolph Jr., who dedicated the theater. Governor Rolph applauded the Nasser Brothers for building a grand movie theater in Alameda at the height of the Great Depression when movies were the primary form of entertainment and proved a great escape from the grim realities of the times. It also proved to be the last great movie palace built in the Bay Area. Alameda’s 35,000 residents had plenty of theaters—the Strand, the Rio, the Vogue, the Park and the Neptune—but they didn’t have a true movie palace until the Alameda Theater: 33,400 square feet, 2,200 seats, and one of the largest movie screens in the Bay Area.

The theater was a grand Art Deco attraction featuring sculptured wall reliefs, elaborate light fixtures, intricate metalwork and gilt-framed mirrors, complete with a vertical blade sign that soared 70 feet into the sky with “Alameda” in big capital letters. The theater was built in 14 months at a cost of $500,000. After decades of success, the screen went dark in 1979 as a result of declining attendance. Since then, its cavernous hall has housed a number of businesses, including the Yankee Doodle roller rink, a gymnastics setting, teenage dance clubs, and then it almost became a chain pizza restaurant for kids.

Allen Michaan, the crusading restorer of Bay Area movie theaters and owner of Oakland’s Grand Lake Theater, led a campaign to save the Alameda Theater and later tried to piece together a deal to reopen it. Michaan was unable to get financing from the City or a bank, so he gave up in the late 1990s. It wasn’t until 2003 that the Community Improvement Commission of the City of Alameda (CIC) issued bonds through a reorganized redevelopment program which rendered the theater renovation project both feasible and desirable.

The real work of revamping the theater to its former splendor began in earnest in November 2006. The CIC headed up the restoration project, who restored as much of the building’s original elements as possible while also adapting the theater to the needs of a modern cinema. Because the theater was partly paid for with federal money, the work was required to conform with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Historic Preservation Projects.

Much of the exterior of the building has been restored, with the marquee and storefronts returned to their original character. The budget for the renovation totaled $15.5 million, with roughly 70 percent of its hard construction costs for structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and other code requirements. Besides the CIC, the restoration team consisted of:

• Designers and Architects—Architectural Resources Group
• Improvement owners and theater operators—Kyle and Elgina Conner and their company, Alameda Entertainment Associates, L.P.
• Construction—C. Overaa & Co.
• Restoration of interior finishes—Evergreen Studios

Together this group accomplished an outstanding restoration effort that the City and its inhabitants are very proud of. As highlighted in the photo, the Alameda Theater auditorium once again houses a single screen theater with 750 seats, including balcony seating. The comprehensive rehabilitation efforts of the auditorium include:

• Removal and replacement of the level floor (created some years ago when the building was converted to a skating rink)
• All walls replastered, where needed, and leafed finishes preserved, stabilized or restored
• Relamping of the chandelier and cleaning, repairing and/or replacement of the remaining light fixtures
• Repairing and fireproofing of the original curtain
• Repairing and repainting the orchestra pit and stage stairs

In addition, there were three major modifications necessary to accommodate the programmatic needs of a modern cinema: 1) an expanded ticket booth in the entry foyer, 2) a new concession stand (installed under the existing balcony), and 3) stadium seating installed in the theater auditorium.

Kyle Conner and his company, Alameda Entertainment Associates, operate the restored Alameda Theater. Conner is an independent movie developer and operator who has made the movies his life’s work. He first worked in a movie theater as a 14-year-old in his native Salt Lake City and has spent the past 25 years in the business. Conner is no stranger to Alameda. In the mid-’90s, he managed Lippert Jr.’s Southshore Cinemas when he worked for North American Cinemas of Santa Rosa. In 2001, he went into business for himself. He found out about the City’s plan to restore the old theater and had his initial meeting about it in the summer of 2001. “It’s a life-altering commitment for me. I’m very excited.”

On the exterior, the blade sign has been restored and repainted, as have the marquee canopy, and the black-and-white-striped awnings have been put up to match the originals. Automated ticket booths on either side of the entrance replace the old ticket booth.

Being the theater’s most richly decorated room, the lobby hosts much of the restoration work. The lobby’s coffered ceiling and plaster floral designs have been repainted in silver and gold dutch metal leaf to match the original. The original chandelier’s 180 etched glass panels have been cleaned, restored and/or replaced. Two of the lobby’s original chandeliers were somehow removed from the theater after it closed, but were anonymously returned and now opulently hang in their place once again. The lobby’s twin torchieres have also been restored. The grand auditorium features new acoustical panels, which have been wrapped in fabric to match the original painted wall colors. Most of the original curtain has been restored. Another true treasure in the lobby is the Hippocampus, known as the Mermaid’s Horse, a mythical, beautiful, and majestic ocean steed.

In summary, the exquisite Alameda Theater restoration is the result of four key ingredients working in complementary fashion: 1) a terrific team, 2) thorough research, 3) continued cooperation, and 4) a complete dedication to artistry, quality and detail. We sincerely acknowledge and thank the City of Alameda, Architectural Resources Group, Alameda Entertainment Associates and C. Overaa & Co. for their excellent restoration work on re-establishing and opening this historic Alameda treasure.

The Maison Theater was built to provide a movie theater for the Navy personnel and their families living at the Alameda Naval Air Station (NAS). The Maison was one property, among many, that was left vacant when the Naval Air Station closed in 1992. Nothing in the theater remained that could be used for a structure suitable for theater viewing. In fact, the 900-seat Navy theater didn’t look like much; it blended in with the many blocky facades that populated the NAS. Allen Michaan, the well-known Art Deco Theater renovator and restorer described this property as “absolutely decrepit—an absolute nightmare.” Michaan summarized the existing theater building as one where, “everything that really could be wrong with it was”. The electrical inspector said, “pull all of the wiring out of the whole building and replace it all.” By this time, Allen had renovated over 30 theaters and he’d never had to do that before.

Thank goodness, that this preservation–minded theater renovator took an interest in this building and transformed the Maison Theater into what became known in 2002 as the lovely Art Deco “Auctions by the Bay Theater”. Auctions by the Bay Theater is now a beautiful, luxurious and opulent movie theater facility—perfect for events such as corporate meetings, seminars, sales presentations, weddings, private film screenings, and a wide variety of other uses. Besides its theater and box office features, this space occupies the home of Auctions By The Bay’s live auctions of art and antiques, which occur several times each month.

Over the years, Michaan has cemented his reputation as a preservationist—turning run-down theaters and forgettable warehouse spaces into period movie shrines, notably Art Deco, that bring back memories from an earlier time. In Allen Michaan’s words, alone, “My focus for the future is what I’m doing here; walking through aisles that look immaculate even when the house lights are on. I’m making the transition from the traditional movie palace operator that I’ve been all these years into applying that philosophy and style and ambience to the auction world. We’re trying to create something that’s sort of a hybrid that nobody’s done before.”

What is ironic is that the Auctions by the Bay Theater is considered “restored,” but it never looked like this. It used to be a plain box theater. When Michaan took possession of the theater, he selected a grand Art Deco architectural theme, spent an estimated $1 million, and created a movie palace. It’s beautiful! As Michaan doesn’t own the theater, he craftfully designed all of the lovely interior fixtures, furnishing and facades to be terrific ‘in place’ but also removable—this includes everything—the red ornamental plaster and mural, the red velour drapes and chairs, and opulent carpeting. Auctions by the Bay Theater, like many other NAS properties is leased by the City of Alameda from the U.S. Navy.

This lovely transformed Art Deco building also hosts Michaan’s Auction by the Bay gallery rooms and live-auction area. Movies and a growing number of special business and community events take place in this theater, while the remaining space is reserved for auction activities. It was originally planned that the Art Deco theater seating and stage would host Michaan’s auctions—using the theater stage to display each item(s) being auctioned. This grand theater venue was found to be overwhelmingly formal for auction-bidders. To better optimize the building for auction goers, the back of the theater was redesigned as multi-layer auction room and gallery with a live auction seating and bidding section.

This is one NAS location well worth visiting even if one doesn’t intend to bid. In Michaan’s Auctions by the Bay Theater, a walk-through shows a terrific and beautiful Art Deco theater that features large warehouse-size galleries. You can stroll through the galleries at your leisure; it’s like going to a free museum—and best of all, everything is up for sale! The lobby is done in metallic Art Deco friezes. Upstairs, the entry to the balcony is The Egyptian Room, complete with a brilliant Art Deco gold Egyptian motif.

This lovely Queen Anne was built in 1894, with the first owner being a musician by the name of William H. Muller. At some later date, much of the decorative millwork was removed and composition siding was added to the house. In the ensuing years the house fell into disrepair and was even added to the Alameda Architectural Preservation Society’s list of derelict homes.

Anthony Yan saw the house on Lincoln Avenue in 2005. Though the outside appearance was very blighted, he recognized the inherent soundness of the structure and purchased it that year. His intention was to fix it up and use it as a rental property.

The new owner kept the house empty during the renovation except for using some inside space as an office. Besides removing the composition siding, the work included restoration of extensive missing trim. He did the work himself with the assistance of his firm, Yanscape Designs, a landscape contracting company.

Mr. Yan has previously renovated many homes in Oakland and Alameda, primarily of Craftsman and later era design, including one on Mastick Court; this one was his first Victorian house.

Asked whether the house on Lincoln was the most difficult or most rundown property he had ever worked with, he said, “No, actually this one was pretty good.”

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